Forgotten, but not gone
by Angel the Neko
Summary: When pirates clash, a deadly war will begin. But haven't these pirates seen a fight like this somewhere before? The story of two pirate crews, two brothers and an unwilling pirate apprentice... All with one thing in common. More info inside.
1. Prologue: At sea and on land

**Ahoy there! (Didn't say Konnichiwa!) I'm Angel the Neko and welcome to my fanfiction dedicated to three things: 1) Pirates 2) World War Two and 3) My friends. This fanfiction was actually a request and I've been writing it every day before and after school (whenever I get time) since Friday. Chapters for this won't be released as often: it's more like a side project but I hope you enjoy it nonetheless.**

**As I said this fic was requested and is dedicated to my friends shiro-tsubasa-chan but also three anons which I cannot name due to privacy. So, because of our inside jokes, I'll call them this:**

_**The Pharaoh  
Not a Mike  
Cousin-Killer**_

**So warnings: this story's a little vague so these things may change but there will be USUK and slight traces of FrUK (on request of _Not a Mike_). There may even be GerIta and NiChu later, cuz those pairings are just awesome. This story's plotline is based on the events of World War 2 (as requested by those guys ^).**

**Tanoshimu!**

* * *

**Prologue: At sea and on land**

**_A new face to the suspicious scene_  
**

* * *

The flag was raised and there it stayed, fluttering harsh and violently in the aggressive sea winds. It turned its course, the proud Union Jack changing into an evil menacing pirate skull and crossbones.

It was, of course, a pirate's ship.

And, at the bow of the ship was a mean-looking blond haired pirate, the feathers of his hat flowing with the violent wind and his golden hair along with it. The seafaring coat he wore was red and just a few buttons were messily done up as the rest of his coat (draped around his shoulders) flapped with the vicious winds. His eyes were a brilliant emerald green and his impressive thick eyebrows were raised into a smug expression. As was his smile: teeth glinting slightly and his focus fixed upon the vast horizon.

Then, from out of the main ship came a young (yet still noticeably older compared to the first man) fellow pirate. Though he didn't look as dodgy and rough as the first, for his beautiful silky hair was neat and hung attractively just below his jaw line, he was still a nasty pirate. You could tell from his eyes, which were a sparkling blue just like the treacherous ocean that they had sailed on for so long, yet the way his eyes sparked were unmistakeably those of a pirate. That or a rather overly friendly man that you wouldn't want to catch late at night in some dark secluded place...

"It appears zat ze ship approaching is 'eaded zis way." He muttered to his darker companion.

"Let 'em come Frog. I'll send any pirate who comes my way to Davy Jones' locker." He snarled.

"Ohonhon... Whatever you say mon ami."

"That's Captain to you, Frog."

"Oui, _Captain_."

Then the 'frog' retreated back into the main ship and the ominous pirate took a deep breath of the salty sea air.

"That ship'll be down by nightfall or my name's not Arthur Kirkland." He chuckled.

Then he proceeded back into the ship to begin hasty preparations for the coming battle.

* * *

_**Meanwhile, on another ship...**_

Stoic and tough, the man stood there with his green seafaring coat and a large impressive hat placed upon his head. He was emotionless- strong, unreadable and his eyes were both narrow and cold: a standoffish steely blue. His blond hair was neatly slicked back and his arms were folded defensively. He was most definitely neat and smart, after all his pirate's hat was positioned at such a fine angle and the top two buttons of his sea coat were done up so perfectly that one might even question his pirate status. True he was a fearsome captain like any other but he lacked that dirty, rugged look that the first captain had displayed.

"It seems zat a ship is approaching." He grunted, taking note of the fast-approaching bold ship on the horizon.

"Vell let zem come. It's nozing zat me und my crew can't handle. Some of zem may... Differ from ozers but I have faith und respect for my crew und ve vill crush zem soon enough since zey underestimate my abilities. Dummkopfs. An amateur's mistake to make."

The pirate with the noticeable German accent obviously had no idea who he was calling amateurs and that he too was making a mistake. In fact, both ships were. But neither of the ships swayed their course, for they were completely unaware and oblivious.

Then all of a sudden, the door burst open and another man came flying in. He had neat brown hair and shining ambery-brown eyes. His face gleamed with panic and distress and on the left side of his head was a spiral curl which stood on end.

"Ve~! Ludwig there's a big nasty ship approaching! What are we going to do? I'm-a scared!"

The amount of panic and the thick Italian accent was obvious in his voice and for that his superior displayed the slightest amount of sympathy. It was not an emotion that he was familiar with and so the panicked Italian's fear was definitely an impressive one.

"Don't panic Feliciano. It vill be over und done vith before your siesta." The man known as Ludwig said reassuringly.

"Yay! I was so worried that it'd cut into pasta time!" His companion Feliciano beamed.

"Feliciano, vith you, any time is pasta time." Ludwig sighed.

"Well, that's true!" He cried happily, and then he added: "...Ludwig?"

"Ja Feliciano?"

"You'll protect me won't you?"

"...Of course I vill. Alvays. You und everyvone else."

"Yay! That's a relief."

"Now go prepare for ze coming battle."

"Yes sir! Shall I go get my super special white flag?"

"On second zought: go hide in ze kitchen."

* * *

_**In the harbour...**_

"Wow! This place is so cool!"

The boy's mouth was wide open with pure amazement and his eyes were as wide as saucers. His short dirty blond hair was flowing in the salty sea air and on the top of his head was a single flick of hair which stood on end and was also swaying in the breeze. He wore a brown tattered coat and his blue eyes glinted with excitement. The brown coat he wore was messy and torn, much like his hair which was an extremely dirty and tangled mess.

On his face was on odd looking accessory: a pair of half-rimmed spectacles. It was not common around those parts and the boy couldn't recall how he obtained them himself. Traditionally, eyeglasses were things for rich people and he was nowhere near as rich as he was meant to be to own eyeglasses. But they suited him very well and aided his sight greatly.

"It's pretty big! I'm bound to find a cool ship to take me on around here somewhere!"

The boy seemed quite young- well, his attitude was at least. Like a young child, yet his physical appearance didn't look that much past the age of 18. But what was important was that he was completely taken with the scene: the impressive ships, the hard working men- to him, all of this was fantastic- simply breathtaking.

And, on top of the cliff overlooking the harbour stood a small-ish man with a slightly feminine physique. His dark brown hair was long and tied back into a low, loose ponytail. His deep brown irises were serious and fixed on the harbour below.

"I know you're here-aru." He whispered under his breath. "I can feel it."

Suddenly he took out a round, black, metallic object resembling that of a certain cooking utensil.

"And I'm here to stop you."

Then he jumped down from the highest point on the cliff, landing firmly on his two feet and resisting the temptation to exclaim loudly from sheer excitement. But, as he landed, he couldn't help himself from gasping out his favourite catchphrase:

"A-aiya!"

Quickly he gathered his wits and dashed off into the harbour, glancing around every turn and peering over every obstacle. It was obvious that he was searching for something, or more specifically: someone. Whatever it was, he was obviously determined to find it as soon as possible.

Perhaps it was the young boy, fascinated by the mere gathering of ships and the impressive-looking harbour? Or maybe it was the two blonds out at sea: the Frog and _Captain_ Arthur Kirkland? Could it even be the panicked "pirate" Feliciano or the dreaded yet serious Captain Ludwig? Or maybe... Just maybe...

It was something else. A new face to this suspicious scene.

* * *

**^^ I hope you guys enjoyed that! Especially two of my requesters: The Pharaoh and Not a Mike. They've only been watching me write this on paper and have insisted on reading this when it's up. Satisfied guys?**

**So as I said before, chapters for this won't be up as often but I still hope that you guys will enjoy it and eagerly await each chapter.**

**Sayonara minna-san!**

**~Neko**

_**Along with requesters shiro-tsubasa-chan, **_**The Pharaoh**_**, **_**Not a Mike**_** and **_**Cousin-Killer**_**. Couldn't have done this without you guys, but I could have done without your constant peering at my work... ¬.¬**_


	2. Captain to all, friend to none

**Ciao! Here we are: chapter 2 of Forgotten, but not gone, the fanfiction prompted by shiro-tsubasa-chan, _The Pharaoh_, _Not a Mike_ and _Cousin-Killer_! Today's chapter focuses mainly on Captain Arthur Kirkland (who, in case new people hadn't noticed, is my favourite character!). We'll also be introducing yet a new face to the scene which happens to be the favourite of shiro-tsubasa-chan!**

**Tanoshimu!**

* * *

**Chapter 1: Captain to all, friend to none**

_**That's Captain Arthur Kirkland to you!**_

* * *

"Right so I'll hide in the kitchen and you'll be on 'cleanup duty'..."

After a long conversation of reasoning and trying to make Feliciano understand, they had finally come to an agreement. Ludwig had been sympathising with him since Feliciano didn't like violence or killing and Feliciano had been panicking and waving his white flag because he didn't want to be hurt.

"Zat's right. Now go hide und take your Bruder vith you." Ludwig instructed.

"Ve~! Aye aye Ludwig!"

Feliciano saluted him, but with the wrong hand. He used his left, which often got on Ludwig's nerves. But he didn't do it on purpose. It wasn't to tease or annoy Ludwig- he just did it because he forgot. Feliciano was a little clumsy and stupid, but Ludwig still kept him, a fact that seemed a little odd to the rest of the crew since Ludwig was a man that had a low tolerance for the weak and useless. To the rest of the crew, weak and useless was practically the definition of Feliciano.

"Hey hey Ludwig?" Feliciano asked.

Ludwig let out a heavy sigh, finding it hard to control the amount of annoyance in his voice and the irritated vein on his forehead. Placing a gloved hand over his face and sighing once more, he asked: "Ja Feliciano?" with his other fist shaking slightly.

"What's cleanup duty?" He asked curiously.

"None of your business." Ludwig growled.

"Ve~ got it! 'Cleanup duty' is none of my business!"

Feliciano's child-like innocence actually brought a small smile to Ludwig's face as he removed his gloved hand. He wasn't shaking and had calmed slightly due to the fact that the Italian hadn't wanted to push any further.

"Correct. Now go hide und varn ze ozers on your way." Ludwig nodded.

"Ve~! I'll be sure to warn Ivan and the others!" Feliciano beamed.

"... Feliciano?" Ludwig asked.

"Yeah Ludwig?"

"Don't get too close to Ivan okay?"

"Sì Ludwig! Anything for you!"

Then the strict blond haired German watched as his peppy Italian friend left the room, all bubbly and cheerful. He obviously had no idea of the plans formulating in Ludwig's head, the ideas that were cropping up and the thoughts flowing through his mind.

* * *

_**Captain Arthur Kirkland's ship...**_

"Francis! Get out here! I don't care what you're doing, whether you're doing your nails or slurping snails just get out here right now!"

The captain clothed in red was obviously cross. His gloved hands were placed on his hips and his large impressive eyebrows were furrowed in anger. Any observer could see his rage building, and Arthur Kirkland wasn't one to be disobeyed or angered. However, the man locked within his cabin seemed to think he was above it.

"You sound frustrated mon ami, could it be zat you are a little irritated with somezing?" The voice from inside chuckled.

"A little? A little! There's an enemy ship approaching, you're not out here and you think I'm a little irritated? I'm furious!" Arthur yelled.

"Ohonhon... It seems zat furious is a bit of an understatement..."

"Francis Bonnefoy! If you're not out here in three seconds then not only will I chop of that good for nothing head of yours, I'll revoke your cooking privileges!"

In contrast, the first statement seemed more threatening than the second. The second certainly seemed more serious, yet Francis still didn't hesitate to let out a loud yawn. Arthur was fast running out of ideas, but as one dawned on him, he leaned in sneakily and grinned in a maliciously evil sort of way.

"Don't test me Francis. Delay me any longer and your head won't be the only thing I chop off."

Suddenly the door opened to reveal Francis stood up tall with his back completely straight and his hands by his sides. His uniform was immaculate, from his smart blue coat to his tied back golden hair. The idea of having 'something else' chopped off other than his head didn't appeal to him obviously and now he was trying to suck up to his captain, just like any surrender monkey would do.

"That's more like it, Frog." Arthur muttered cockily.

"Oui monsieur."

"Any more of this from you an' I'll make ya walk the plank. Got it?"

"Oui monsieur."

"That's Captain Arthur Kirkland to you."

Then the angry captain stormed off, making a huge uproar with his bold pirate boots against the old wooden floor- reflecting his angry exterior. Francis's posture softened and he let out a huge sigh as he slowly loosened himself from the uptight, obedient position that he had been in before. Making sure his superior couldn't hear, he let out a small whisper to himself.

"You're Captain Arthur Kirkland to everyone." He sighed.

Then he removed his impressive silver blade and inspected it before heading off to follow his captain to what could quite possibly be either his doom or victory. Inwardly, he prayed with all his might that he and the second alternative would be victorious.

* * *

"Look who decided to show up. I was beginning to miss the smell of wine and cheese." Arthur grunted.

"Sorry Ar-Captain." Francis apologised.

"That's more like it."

Then Arthur dramatically removed his fine cutlass and turned to Francis with a quick smile.

"Ready?" Arthur asked.

"Always Arthur." Francis smiled.

"I'll let you off for that one."

And there they stood, lying in wait like two predators awaiting their prey. What they didn't know was the identity, the skill level and the determination of their so called 'prey'. That would cost them a lot more than they realised. So the two blonds remained in blissful unawareness, patiently awaiting the battle to begin.

* * *

_**Captain Ludwig's ship...**_

"Ah."

He shot up in bed, though not dramatically so. It was actually surprisingly calm, considering the dream he had just experienced. Then again it was nothing new. The same dream had been entering his sleep every night for the past few weeks and he had began to become attached to them very slightly. In fact, a slightly melancholy feeling swept over him as he realised that he may not be able to dream them anymore soon.

But enough about that. Telling himself it was just a dream and nothing more, he arose from his bed and began to dress. His night clothes consisted of... Well, nothing. Just a long fluffy white scarf. Even in bed, the scarf was done up nice and cosy and he seemed to have no fear of the dangers that could come from sleeping with it on in such a fashion. His pirate attire was pretty much like any other: black, yet accompanied by that long pure white scarf. It seemed an odd accessory, but if you took it off the man then he probably wouldn't look right. Also, he may just kill you.

This pirate had silvery white hair, like snow in winter and his eyes were deep- almost purple. His face always seemed to be brightened with a smile and he had quite a tough build. Slipping into a pair of tough brown pirate boots, he walked outside and onto the deck, smiling up at the sun for blessing them with such a lovely day.

"Ivan. It's good to see zat you are avake." Ludwig mumbled through gritted teeth.

"_Dobroye utro_ Ludwig." Ivan smiled. "So, what is the situation?"

"There's a ship approaching, und ve have been preparing for ven ve come into contact vith it." Ludwig explained.

"I see. It is a good day for killing da?"

"Ja. Sehr gut."

"Oh? I can see the enemy."

This was of course true. The second ship belonging to the enemy was just a short jump away from theirs and stood opposite to them were two blond haired men, one with longer hair tied back into a girlish ponytail and the other with messy blond hair and a red pirate hat placed upon his head. Out of these two men, the slightly feminine looking one with the blue eyes was first to speak.

"Bonjour!" He greeted happily.

He had his arms raised dramatically and a huge happy smile plastered across his face. In fact, his excitement was so dramatic and exaggerated that it actually became slightly believable. Ludwig was having a hard time deciding whether or not he was being serious or just plain sarcastic. After a few moments of complete silence, he tilted his head and lowered his arms.

"Non? I guess we won't get on after all... Ah what a shame..." He sighed.

Now that time was definitely sarcasm and Ludwig quickly became very irritated with the noticeably French sailor. Ivan kept up his happy smile and closed eyes as usual, but Ludwig didn't look as friendly. His brows furrowed and the grip on his cutlass tightened menacingly.

"Who are you?" He growled.

"Well I am ze great Francis Bonnefoy! No doubt you 'ave 'eard of me?"

The arms rose again triumphantly and Ludwig was beginning to enjoy the idea of putting an end to the Frenchman who was obviously in love with himself. Ivan still said nothing, but an indescribable psychotic thought was racing through his mind at that moment, even more violent that Ludwig's. It was at this point however, that Ludwig realised the pirate dressed in red had said nothing so far and so he looked the man up and down suspiciously.

His eyes were a vibrant shade of emerald green, but this fascinating colour was not what stood out to him. Nor was it his untameable mop of golden hair or his menacing toothy grin. It was his eyebrows- his large, thick bushy eyebrows. Honestly, Ludwig had never seen such eyebrows. He didn't even think being able to grow eyebrows like that was humanly possible. With an appearance like that... Could it be...?

"Ah yes, and zis is-" Francis began.

"Captain Arthur Kirkland!" He interrupted, making Francis frown with annoyance. "And I shall be the death of you!"

Captain Arthur Kirkland. Ludwig should have known. He'd often heard of him, tales of the man with the unnatural green eyes, the endless bloodlust and the thick eyebrows that would make even the mightiest of sea monsters cringe (admittedly, the third type of these tales were the most popular). Ludwig had certainly heard of him, but appearance was not what gave away his identity. The same went for Francis too. There was something more, an aura calling out to him- trying to tell him who they were. A signal, a sign, an intuition- just some way of knowing who they were.

But that was just crazy talk... Right?

* * *

**Yeah Ludwig. Crazy talk. Ludwig's off his rocker! Let's celebrate with a German sparkle party! Though... That might make him worse so let's hold off on that idea for a moment. In the meantime, review and... Well, just whatever you want. Reviews are much appreciated, and extra nice ones make me really happy!**

**Thanks to _Aqua_ and ShadowEntity for reviewing!**

**Sayonara minna-san!**

**~Neko**

_**Along with requesters shiro-tsubasa-chan, **_**The Pharaoh**_**, **_**Not a Mike**_** and **_**Cousin-Killer**_**. Couldn't have done this without you guys, but I could have done without your constant peering at my work... ¬.¬**_


	3. Barrels and Bullets

**Guten Tag. (What is it with me and the weird greetings?) Sorry this took a while to update but hey, don't say I didn't warn you. I've been caught up in stuff like Homework and HetaQuest! (Okay you can hit me now for that last remark, but it is pretty addicting).**

**In this chapter I get to show off my excellent knowledge of pirate vocabulary! But I'd like to explain first why you'll see him speaking another way sometimes:**

**Arthur doesn't naturally speak that way. Normally he is polite and gentlemanly with his speech but he has to uphold the reputation of a pirate (no matter how low that may be). However he drops his pirate speech later after someone hears him speaking normally. Basically he sees no point in keeping it up if someone hears him.**

**Tanoshimu!**

* * *

**Chapter 2: Barrels and Bullets**

_**A 'natural gift' for certain things**_

* * *

"So Captain Arthur Kirkland, ve meet at last..." Ludwig muttered.

"Aye."He grinned. "And I'm sorry to say chaps, but it looks like ye've just earned yerself a one way ticket to Davy Jones's locker."

"Is that so?" Ivan smiled. "Well I'm afraid that you'll have to cancel your plans. Ivan Braginsky bows to no-one."

"Who said anythin' about bowin'? Trust me, thar's worse I could do t' you, ye filthy bilge rat." Arthur smirked.

The look on his face could frighten anyone. It was like almost everything he had committed was evident in his eyes at that very moment. But Ivan and Ludwig weren't scared, not one little bit.

"Compared to vat I've done, your crimes vill be like a child's punishment." Ludwig growled.

"Be that so Captain Ludwig?" Arthur asked. "Then attack!"

The order was unexpected and the movement was sudden, all at once the crew of Captain Arthur Kirkland jumped from their ship to Ludwig's. Ivan took a few steps back to ready himself, as did Ludwig but as he took the steps, he couldn't help but wonder:

How did Arthur know his name?

Realising that this was a momentary distraction to catch him off guard and that Arthur probably knew him from the crimes he had committed, he shook off the thought and held up his trusty blade in preparation for battle.

* * *

"Get your big butt outta my face!"

Feliciano did as instructed and shifted over as much as he could to give his brother more room. Hating seeing his brother mad at him, he whimpered an apology in fear.

"Sorry big brother, but I didn't want to share a barrel all to myself!"

"Nnnngh..."

Feliciano and Lovino were twins- at least they thought they were. Lovino's hair was much darker and his curl was on the opposite side. While Feliciano's curl was on the left of his head, Lovino's was on the right. Plus they looked very different in facial expressions as well. Feliciano's face seemed lighter and Lovino's looked both darker and grumpier. Needless to say, Feliciano was certainly the happier of the two.

"Surely you didn't want to go all by yourself?" Feliciano asked.

"Look just shut the hell up already! You'll get us both killed!" Lovino snapped.

Almost instantly, Feliciano shut up. He may not have been the sharpest tool in the shed but he could follow simple instructions well when he had to. Lovino kept his gaze anywhere but on his silent brother and soon found himself staring through a fairly big hole in the wood.

In case you hadn't already guessed, Feliciano and Lovino were hidden in a box. More specifically, a box of tomatoes.

Now Feliciano and Lovino Vargas were both Italian and came with a natural love of things like fashion, boots, pasta and of course- tomatoes, which was probably why the box was almost empty. Honestly with all the tomatoes that Lovino ate, you probably would have expected the box to be empty. Luckily it wasn't and at least two layers of tomatoes were closely packed along the bottom. Lovino inwardly hoped he wouldn't squash them. If anything had to be squashed, let it be the potatoes he thought.

Suddenly something caught his eye. Through the small hole of the box, Lovino could see a flash of red and the shining of silver- a pirate's cutlass. Instinctively, Lovino cupped a hand around his brother's mouth to protect him and timidly pointed through the hole to get Feliciano to see what he was seeing.

It was Captain Arthur Kirkland.

"That scurvy sea dog. I'll make that Cap'n Ludwig walk the plank if it be the last thing I do." He growled to himself.

He began to prowl around the kitchen like some bloodthirsty predator and the twins' breathing dropped down to almost nothing. Lovino's hand cupped tighter and tighter around his brother's mouth and Feliciano frowned a little at how much compassion his brother was showing. But Lovino cared too much it seemed for after another tightening squeeze around his brother's mouth, Feliciano let out a small yelp of pain. Lovino pulled away and his eyes widened in fear as he peered round to look at Captain Arthur Kirkland who had suddenly snapped his neck up like he had heard the noise.

"Who's thar?" He asked.

He stepped closer and closer to the box, each step he took jabbing a new meaning of fear into the brothers. Lovino clapped his hand over his own mouth and Feliciano did the same. They decreased their breathing to a point that would make you question if they were living or not and their eyes looked fit to burst out of pure fear.

But as the feared Captain took another step, making him face to face with the box he carried on in the other direction. Both of the brothers were puzzled, but it was about to get even worse.

"What? I can't hear you." He said calmly.

Both Feliciano and Lovino turned to each other and raised their left eyebrow. Who was he talking to? There was no-one there at all. Just a blank space.

"Who are you? What are you trying to say?" He asked.

Though the panicked brothers didn't know it, Arthur was hearing a series of very strange voices. Some deep and gruff, but most were shrill and high-pitched. He couldn't actually see the source of this noise, just like the brothers in the box but he could just make out their voices. They were trying to tell him something, but what?

_...Nd...Come ba... We..._

That was what he could hear: fragmented words of some kind of message. But was this message meant for him? He presumed not, for they would have used his name. The voices sounded familiar, but at the same time he swore he had never heard them before.

"Hello?" He called.

Then, all of a sudden, the drawing of a blade was heard and Arthur felt the cold touch of steel against his neck.

"_Guten Tag_."

Arthur didn't move. After all, how could he when the feel of an icy blade was pressed to his neck? Even though there were no mirrors around him and he did not make the effort to glance out of the corner of his eye, he greeted his attacker warmly.

"Ah, a German speaker are we? Then again, that's to be expected of the infamous Captain Ludwig. _Wie geht's_?" Arthur asked with a confident smile.

"_Prima, danke_." Ludwig muttered with a cold stare shooting into the back of Arthur's head.

"Well that's to be expected. After all, you've got me completely defenceless and on the ropes. I'm completely at your mercy, so you would be feeling pretty good about yourself." Arthur chuckled.

Feliciano noted the absence of fear in his voice. As Arthur had said: he was completely defenceless and had been utterly defeated, so why did he still seem so confident and calm? He turned to frown at his brother, but Lovino was intently watching Arthur Kirkland, intensely waiting for what would happen next.

"How do you understand my native tongue?" Ludwig questioned suspiciously.

"How d'you understand mine?" Arthur chuckled in retort.

As Arthur chuckled, almost mockingly, Ludwig pressed the blade harder to his enemy's neck and instantly the cocky captain's laughter died down.

"There's a lot you don't know about me. I speak a number of different languages. Comes in pretty handy really." Arthur explained.

Feliciano wanted to mouth the question: "D'you reckon he knows ours?" to his brother, but he couldn't because Lovino was still watching the scene intently.

"How do you know so many languages?"

"A natural gift." Arthur smiled as he turned back to face Ludwig.

Now that Arthur was facing him, Ludwig was annoyed. The fact that he was smiling annoyed him even more. Ludwig no longer felt in control of the situation so he brought a knee up and targeted it in a place that would most definitely bring any man to his knees, no matter how cocky or confident. As Arthur fell to the floor, gasping out in pain and cursing in a very vulgar manner, Ludwig kicked him onto his back with his black rubber boots and placed a foot on his chest.

"Liar. Answer me truthfully. An ability like zat doesn't come naturally." Ludwig mumbled

Arthur smiled weakly, his face no longer scrunched up in pain.

"Yes I suppose it doesn't. Impressive skills such as that need to be learned over a long period of time. Just like this."

Ludwig only had a short time to register the warning and it was much too late when he did. All in one instant, Arthur pulled a pistol from his holster and aimed straight upwards. The shot was like the instant Feliciano's life slowed down and he instantly burst out of the box, despite his protective brother clinging to his waist.

Ludwig fell back in pain and Feliciano ran to his aid. Arthur, taking no notice of the emotional scene, jumped up and seized his opportunity to escape by zooming out of there, quicker than the bullet that had hit Ludwig.

"L-Ludwig! Say something! S-speak!" Feliciano stuttered.

"Forget it Feli. He's gone." Lovino muttered as he pulled Feliciano away from the Captain.

"No! He's only wounded, we can still save him!" Feliciano cried.

"Feliciano..." Lovino whispered.

Without warning, Ludwig got to his feet clutching his bullet wound in pain. He hobbled over to the staircase and slowly he ascended, catching sight of Arthur Kirkland sailing away with his crew as he reached the top. The Captain with the thick eyebrows gave him a smile and a quick salute before he turned to leave and Ludwig growled with anger.

"Arthur Kirkland! Mark my words! Zis is var!" Ludwig roared.

"I look forward to it Luddy-old boy." Arthur chuckled loudly.

Feliciano joined Ludwig at his side and led him back to his room to attend to him. Thankfully, the shot wasn't fatal and the bullet had only grazed his shoulder. Feliciano was able to successfully clean the wound, leaving only a scar where the bullet had once been.

And, upon seeing that scar, Ludwig was determined to get revenge.

* * *

_**Captain Arthur Kirkland's ship...**_

"Right. I think it's time for me to get some rest..." Arthur sighed.

Francis began to nod, but as the Captain removed his large red hat and took the first step into his quarters, Francis saw something that made him gasp with shock and fill with alarm.

"Mon Dieu! Arthur, you're bleeding!" Francis exclaimed.

Arthur angled his neck so that he could see the violent gash made on his right shoulder: the same place as Ludwig's bullet wound. A droplet of blood crawled out of the wound and slowly trickled downwards, blending in with his red clothing. The fatigued Captain just shrugged it off, straining his shoulder slightly but his French companion wasn't as easy to let go of it.

"Please friend. Wait on your bed and I will bring 'elp immediately!" Francis instructed.

Sighing as he decided he had nothing better to do, Arthur went to go wait on his bed like the Frenchman had instructed. Really he just wanted to get some sleep and be left alone after such a disappointing battle. But did that Frog have any consideration for his feelings? No he didn't. These were the thoughts running through Arthur's mind as he grumbled to himself impatiently on his bed. What he didn't realise though, was that Francis did care, otherwise he wouldn't be bothering to tend to his wound.

Francis returned with the necessary supplies for cleaning a wound and knelt himself down by Arthur's bed. He stared at the wound for a few seconds and Arthur, realising what he was getting at, pulled down the fabric of his clothes, making Francis raise a suggestive thin eyebrow.

"Just get it over with before I kick you out rapunzel." Arthur snapped.

"Oui, mon ami." Francis smiled.

"Stop calling me your friend. We aren't friends." Arthur sighed.

"Arthur, we 'ave known each ozer for more zan a year. I know you very personally, your 'abits, your 'istory- everyzing. I zink zat gives me ze right to call you friend- non?"

As Francis said this, he didn't look up. He was carefully nursing Arthur's injured shoulder back to its normal state and this was a delicate process. But, after a short pause, he looked up and raised his eyebrow again- though less suggestive than the last time.

"So... Friends?"

"Hmph. Whatever. I have no need for any other title other than Captain anyway."

"I shall take zat as a yes."

* * *

**Oh yeah did I mention there may be slight hints of FrUK? There will be slight hints of everything. This thing will probably turn out to end with GerIta, NiChu and USUK/FrUK. Some of my requesters support FrUK and others support USUK so I'm not sure yet!**

**Just in case you didn't know, Wie Geht's means How are you, Prima danke means Great thanks and of course Guten Tag means good day!**

**Thanks to Lord Kharl, ShadowEntity and escritoria for reviewing!**

**Sayonara minna-san!**

**~Neko**


	4. Attack on the harbour

**Ni hao! ...I swear it's a different greeting for each chapter. The good thing is, I probably won't run out because there are many different greetings in this world! Sorry about the long wait for me to update but hey, don't say I didn't warn you!**

**Today's chapter is one of my favourites. Why? Well you'll find out when we get to the harbour. By the way, I made the setting a harbour for a very particular reason. If you're not sure, have a look at what I said in the first chapter.**

**And now, some foreshadowing! Tanoshimu!**

* * *

**Chapter 3: Attack on the harbour**

_**Changing one boy's opinion forever**_

* * *

**?**

"_I must say. This is a very nice thing you've done for all of us."_

"_Please, it's my pleasure. Putting a smile on everyone's face really makes me happy."_

"_Well that's very nice of you."_

"_By the way have you seen..."_

_The man's voice trailed off as he entered his sentence and covered his mouth with a cough. His companion could tell that the conversation was getting to be a bit awkward. Reading the atmosphere always was his strong point._

"_Well, you know. After all, who doesn't?" The now nervous man chuckled._

"_I haven't heard from him for about two hours. I will go and see what he's doing." The other said reassuringly._

"_Thanks."_

"_Were you worried?"_

"_About him? Of course not! I mean why would I be? I wouldn't, so there you have it!"_

"_I see. I suppose I shall go see him now. By the way, your face is very red."_

_Stating that it was red only made it redder, something that brought the slightest hint of a smile to the quieter man's face. His friend was always a little contradictory about his feelings: never saying what he truly felt inside and only throwing out angry retorts from his exterior. Perhaps it would be better for him to say what he truly felt. Then again his friend wasn't one to impose like that, and it was much more exciting to watch things unfold like the plot of a very angst-filled story._

_The man's quiet friend finally reached the room he was searching for. It was labelled with the number '2' in black lettering against a golden shimmery backdrop. He knocked on this door a few times before going against his polite instincts and slowly opening the door as he peered inside._

"_A-"_

* * *

**Captain Arthur Kirkland's ship...**

"Zere! All done!" Francis declared.

It was as the Frenchman (or Frog) had said. Arthur's wound had been pretty much fixed, leaving only a white bandage, stained slightly by the red tinge of blood. The Captain sighed, glad that it was finally over and that the blond Frenchman would finally leave. But he didn't leave, he just gave Arthur that funny, suggestive look that the Captain was so familiar with.

"Well, need any 'elp getting ready for bed?" Francis chuckled.

"Goodnight Frog."Arthur sighed.

"Per'aps you need assistance removing your clothes? I'll be 'appy to 'elp with zat..." Francis suggested.

"Goodnight means beat it, pervert." Arthur muttered, raising his voice a little towards the end.

"Or maybe you need a bed partner, in case you're too scared to get to sleep?" Francis smirked.

"I SAID GOODNIGHT FRANCIS!" Arthur yelled.

Then Arthur threw the Frog out of his room with such violent force but Francis just continued to laugh loudly in his special way of 'ohonhonhonhon'. The door slammed shut behind him and Francis leaned back against it with a sigh. Sure he was playfully jesting about some of the things he said, but most of it was the truth.

It was pretty obvious that Francis honestly liked Arthur. And that was impressive for Francis to genuinely like someone.

"Ah Arthur... You're so cute when you try to be all assertive. Really if you don't become mine, I may even 'ave to take extreme measures." Francis sighed.

Then he walked off to his own room, spacing out completely as he pictured Arthur's cute flustered face once more. The things that face made him want to do... It made Arthur's cuteness almost criminal, to Francis at least. The Frenchman could be very forceful if he wanted to, but at heart he was a passionate lover. He wanted Arthur to love him genuinely. Not for it to be forced. Surely in time, he'd be able to win him over.

At least, that was what he hoped.

* * *

_**In the harbour...**_

"Excuse me."

No-one listened. After all it was just some dirty blond-haired kid addressing them. Okay he may have been a little older than just a 'kid' but that was often how people regarded him. He was a kid- a messy, scruffy little kid. And in truth, that was how he acted. But would anyone ever know that? No, because everyone was treated on appearance, not personality. Honestly, sometimes that made the young man wish he was living somewhere else.

"Hey my name is-"

Who wanted to know his name? No-one of course. Did they have any concern with what _his_ business was? Of course they didn't. He was a zero, a nothing, a nobody.

But he didn't allow himself to be discouraged. Instead he walked through the market stalls stationed in the busy harbour. He had always been like that: a bright and upbeat sort of guy- always cheerful, never sad. Hopefully that attitude would take him far, and save him from what was about to happen.

* * *

"Well he hasn't found me yet." He muttered.

But just as the man said it, he twitched slightly and swiftly jumped out of harm's way. Standing behind him was a brown haired petite man with brown, determined eyes and hair tied back into a loose ponytail. In his hand was a wok which he had just threateningly tried to hit the other man with.

"Perhaps I spoke too soon?" The first man questioned with a grunt of annoyance.

"Yeah. You did." His attacker growled.

The second man didn't let this get to him. In fact he smiled a little. People had often complained how he never smiled, but he did. Just when he was being sly or sneaky. A breeze flowed through the area, gently swaying his jet black tidy hair. His neutral brown eyes stared into the other brown ones, piercing his attacker's confidence slightly.

"Well then. Rets settle this in the usual way." He mumbled.

"Ai ya." His attacker agreed.

The black haired man removed his sharp sword, more formally known as a katana and the other tightened the grip on his makeshift weapon. A short bow came from each of the men and without warning, the fight broke out. The wok came into contact with the katana, making a loud noise as it did and many more after that.

* * *

"Erm... Anyone?"

The blue eyed boy continued to search for someone willing to take him on. Anyone would do. He just needed someone willing to let him on their ship. Maybe as a cabin boy to start with, then he could work his way up. He just desperately wanted to get on any ship that would sail him away...

And help him be a hero.

**CRASH!**

His head snapped back to see a pair of men, one with long brown hair and one with short black hair, fighting viciously and showing no sign of ending. Then on cue, the crowd of people dispersed and the merchants ducked under their stalls. But the aspiring hero didn't duck. No... He did pretty much the opposite: he ran towards the pair, intending to stop them.

"Whoa you two! Settle down will ya?"

The weapons collided again and both began to push with incredible force as they both stared into each other's eyes with such anger and rage that they became extremely scary. The one trying to stop their fight wasn't scared though- in fact he looked completely unaffected.

"No! I won't stop! This man is planning to destroy the harbour, and I can't allow him to do that!" The brown-haired man panted.

"This is none of your business Yao, so stay out!" The man with the katana snapped.

Then the black-haired man began to viciously lash out at the one known as Yao. Yao went for him too, but eventually Kiku made a large gash in his arm. The heroic onlooker gasped slightly but the attacker didn't stop there. He was absolutely determined to maliciously harm and possibly kill the man responsible for getting in the way and delaying his plans.

Being a good dodger, Yao avoided every attack thrown at him. Of course he couldn't dodge forever, but he could sure keep it up for a pretty long time. He kept smoothly avoiding attacks until the ferocious attacker got caught in the planks of the pier. Yao held his arm and smirked but his opponent obviously wasn't going to stand for it. So, summoning all of his strength, he pulled the sword out and began viciously swiping once more.

Then, Yao fell back onto his bottom and dropped his wok clumsily. He had been bested, by _him_ no less. Clutching his arm, he glared up at the victor in anger.

"Go ahead Kiku. Finish me off." Yao hissed.

A smile crept across Kiku's face. A smile of victory, knowing that he had finally bested Yao. This is what everything had been leading up to, all the practise and training, all the hopes and frustrated dreams. So, lifting his sword, he prepared himself to deal the final blow to Yao, excitement filling him as he brought down the sword.

**CLINK!**

Kiku widened his eyes and stepped back in shock. Standing in front of him was the man (or kid) with dirty blond hair, fierce blue eyes and an overall look that could only be described as... Scruffy...

"I don't know what's going on." He declared. "But if you intend to hurt this guy then you'll have to go through me."

"_Nani_? Why would you do that? You don't even know him. Who are you?"

"Isn't it obvious?" The defender smirked. "I'm... The hero!"

Kiku's shock was only momentary. In the next instant he began slashing at his enemy once more, face determined and grip tight on his trusty blade. Crowds of people parted as the battle raged on, showing no sign of stopping. However, Kiku had a bit more of an upper hand being the slightly more trained and able swordsman and so his opponent had a little trouble keeping up.

Then the 'kid' fell back into a stall, which thankfully no merchant was hiding under. As he got up, he noticed that there were several splattered remains of what looked like apples on his back and a tattered black hat upon his head. But since he was engaged in a harsh raging battle, he had no time to fix that- only to carry on blocking and swiping at his bloodthirsty attacker.

"AHH! A pirate!"

He had no idea who had made the cry, but still he stopped. As did Kiku surprisingly. The newly appointed swordsman looked around curiously.

"Pirate? Where?"

"There!"

Then he noticed that several arms were outstretched and fingers were pointing at him. He looked down at himself, gradually realising where the pirate suspicion had come from. He was wearing the slightly shredded remains of what looked like a captain's coat and on top of his head was a black hat adorned with several feathers. But to top it all off, the sword he had randomly picked up to defend Yao with was a cutlass: most well known for its affiliation with pirates.

"Oh haha, guess it kinda looks like I'm a pirate, huh?" He laughed sheepishly.

The eyes of his duelling opponent opened wide. "And you're okay with that?"

"Guess so."

"I thought you were a hero?"

"Can't I be both?"

"No. Pirates are never heroes. Pirates are evil and maricious. Definitery the opposite of a hero. You should rearry know that. But I suppose you're just a child. How regrettable."

"Th-they think I'm a villain?"

* * *

**So they think America's a villain! How will America feel about real pirates now? What happened to China? Who will triumph: Captain Ludwig or Captain Arthur? Find out next time! Leave reviews and add this story to your alerts or favourites if you like it! Next time be prepared for suspense, surprises and... Maple... Leaves?**

**Thanks to Oniongrass, ShadowEntity and Not a Mike for reviewing!**

**Sayonara minna-san!**

**~Neko**


	5. Betrayal

**Dobroye Utro! (I would go and try to find the actual symbols but it is so much easier to just type) How are you guys today? My moods usually reflect the weather and it happens to be raining right now so things are not looking good. On the plus side, I actually went out earlier and finally got to see the sun! (My mom seems to think I'm a vampire... It make Romania so jealous)**

**Before I go onto more vague foreshadowing, I'd like to thank everyone for the lovely reviews I've gotten so far! It's very much appreciated, even if I don't get round to responding know that I read and enjoy every review so thank you very much!**

**Tanoshimu!**

**_I suppose I should be saying 'enjoy' in other languages too... Just one problem: I don't want to- too lazy!_  
**

* * *

**Chapter 4: Betrayal**

_**What started out as annoyance, and turned into hatred**_

* * *

**?**

"_Well it sure was-a nice of him to let us be here!" _

"_Hmph. He's a stupid bastardo if you ask me. To be honest I don't even know why we came. It's a waste of time. After all he's such a-"_

_Suddenly the door opened and in walked a blond-haired man, clothed in mainly blue and red and looking casual for once. He was smiling very slightly and his face seemed to be brightened a little, which made a change from the pessimistic scowl he usually wore._

"_Afternoon." He smiled as he walked in._

"_Buon pomeriggio sir!" Said the man who had been bad-mouthing the other just moments before._

"_Oh ciao! We were just talking about you and-"_

_The man speaking was immediately silenced by his ruder companion, like he didn't want him to continue what he was saying. Which he probably didn't._

"_You were talking about me?"_

"_Yeah!" The ruder man smiled, suddenly happy and no longer scowling. "We were erm talking about how kind you are and cool and... Great? Sir?"_

"_Oh well er thank you..." The man began to blush and they knew they had convinced him. "So what's for dinner?"_

_The rude man with his hand clapped around the happier one's mouth then removed it, allowing the other to speak. He took a huge breath, for he had been deprived of air just a few seconds before and he waited a few moments before speaking._

"_For dinner is..."_

* * *

_**The harbour...**_

"I...I..."

The young blond dropped the threatening cutlass in his hands, not even bothering if it stabbed him in the foot. He stared down at the hands which had held that dreaded blade. The very dirty hands that he'd used to swipe out at another, like a villain would do. In fighting he had become a villain, in picking up that sword he had become a villain. How could he ever forgive himself?

Suddenly a sound reached his ears. Like that of a gust of wind, like something setting on fire. He was, of course, absolutely right. For as he turned around, he saw Kiku standing there with his hand slightly raised and a scene of raging flames behind him. He had caused the fire. The boy's guard had been let down for just a moment, allowing Kiku to do as he pleased.

"It seems you did a great job, 'Hero'-san. But if you can't protect one harbour, then what kind of hero are you? Sayonara, for now." Kiku explained.

Then he left the harbour at an incredible speed and disappeared almost instantly. _What kind of a hero are you? _That question echoed over and over again in the 'hero's' mind. Was he even a hero? Would he ever be one? As the flames rose, the questions piled up. As the heat intensified, so did the danger.

_What kind of a hero am I? Well I suppose I shouldn't be thinking about that here. After all, if I can't save myself then I'll never be able to save anyone in turn._

He glanced around quickly- first to both sides, and then straight downwards. There shaking in the water was a small untouched boat, just big enough for him to escape in. He quickly scanned the area once more in case of injured people needing rescue but not a person could be seen. Eventually, giving up on trying to find survivors, he jumped into the boat and, using his full amount of strength, he swam away, beating the ocean with a heavy force in order to carry him away to safety.

* * *

_**Captain Arthur Kirkland's ship...**_

"Zey're back again Arthur." Francis warned in a stern tone of voice.

"Good. Finally a rematch." Arthur grinned.

Ever since the slight loss yesterday on board Captain Ludwig's ship, Arthur had been itching for a rematch. He had been observing the scar a few times in the mirror, getting increasingly angrier each time he did. Ludwig would pay for what he did. Though he seemed to have completely forgotten about the bullet he had used to shoot Ludwig.

The ship sailed closer to theirs and they were finally close enough to make contact. This time Ludwig's crew were the ones to make the first move. They jumped over to Arthur's ship without a moment to lose and both Arthur and France scarcely had any time to prepare themselves.

Suddenly from out of nowhere, Ludwig jumped in, clashing with Arthur's blade and an unhappy scowl plastered across his face. His teeth were gritted and the force he was using to push his own blade was extremely intense, making it hard for Arthur to defend.

"It's payback time for vat you did to my shoulder Kirkland." Ludwig growled.

"Aye, but I'll have sent ye to Davy Jones' locker before ye can lay a finger on me." Arthur smirked.

Arthur pushed forward and swiped at the violent German, showing no signs of stopping or holding back. Francis showed no mercy either as he fearlessly slashed at Ivan Braginsky who was able to dodge every attack with just once simple dodging step. The battle was definitely going in Arthur's favour, and as Ivan lost his sword to Francis's sharp blade- Ludwig called out for them to retreat quickly, for more than half of his crew had become injured.

Even Ivan, who had been casually dodging every attack made by Francis a few seconds before, had suffered a small blow to his wrist. He hastily made his escape but was dragged back a bit by the fact that Francis had made a nasty gash in his arm. Now it was only Ivan and Ludwig left on the ship- and Ludwig had one last thing to take care of before he left.

He raised his mighty cutlass with no trouble, since he had suffered no injuries since boarding the ship. The same couldn't be said for Ivan who was quickly shuffling away in front of him. It was child's play- in Ludwig's head at least and so he raised the cutlass to finally rid his ship of a problem that had been plaguing him for months.

Ivan was annoying. Not in a cute way like Feliciano, who he just wanted to protect and train- nor in an infuriating way like Arthur who was like a bug that he just wanted to squash but couldn't because he was just so damn sneaky. His hatred for Ivan differed from that slightly.

True, Ivan was his first mate but he definitely didn't act like it. He never seemed that bothered when the crew were making decisions and when he did bother to join, his ideas were always so different and weird compared to Ludwig's. Sure, Ivan had helped in capturing members for their crew- mainly Feliks and Tino but what else had he done? It was the little things that got to Ludwig: the lack of participation, that creepy smile- Ludwig had to get rid of Ivan now.

So he raised the sword and ended Ivan's life.

...Or so he thought.

**CLASH!**

"You-!" Ludwig gasped.

"Me." Arthur chuckled.

Arthur deflected his sword in one single motion of his hand and Ludwig took that as his signal to quickly leave the ship. Ivan looked up at the man who had just betrayed him. Arthur expected him to be mad, to cry out in anger, swear revenge or maybe just lash out by punching the wall or destroying the ship. But as Ludwig sailed away, Ivan did none of these things. He simply smiled widely like some psychotic jack-o-lantern as he fell to the floor and collapsed due to the injuries he had suffered.

And there he lay. Eyes closed and a wide grin spread across his face as Arthur and Francis stared down at him in shock.

* * *

_**Captain Ludwig's ship...**_

"Ve~! Ludwig you're back!" Feliciano beamed.

"Great. He's still alive." Lovino sighed angrily.

Ignoring the ruder, nastier Italian to Feliciano's right, Ludwig went to Feliciano and got straight to the point immediately- not wanting to suffer any more disappointment for that day.

"Ja Feliciano I am back. Did you make preparations for dinner?" Ludwig asked.

"I sure did! How did the attack go?" Feliciano asked curiously.

"Vell it didn't go as planned, but some good came out of it." Ludwig explained.

"Ludwig where's your sword? And where's Ivan?" Feliciano questioned.

"I lost my sword back on zat darn ship. Und as for Ivan I..."

"Ludwig?"

"You don't have to concern yourself vith him anymore. Zink of him as an enemy."

"O-okay Ludwig, I got it."

The silence was awkward, almost eerie. Lovino had his arms folded in disgust of the German captain and Feliciano looked unaffected by the whole thing. Silence enveloped the kitchen for a few moments before Ludwig decided to move on before Feliciano could ask any questions.

"...Vat's for dinner?"

"Ve~! Pasta!"

"Of course..."

* * *

_**Captain Arthur Kirkland's ship...**_

"I-Is that better?" The man whispered.

"_Da_. Thank you for cleaning my sword wounds. It make me pleasure smile." Ivan grinned.

"M-maple!" The other squeaked.

"If you're done intimidating my crew, I need to talk to you- Ivan Braginsky." A voice snapped.

Ivan looked up the stairway to see an intimidating, ominous figure blocking the path of light that was shining through. He could see a large pirate hat on top of his head and a long flowing seafaring coat draped around his shoulders as he placed his hands on his hips angrily.

"Okay. You can leave now slave." Ivan instructed to the timid boy at his side.

"You don't give the orders around here Ivan. I tell my crew members when to leave." Arthur growled as he stormed angrily down the stairs.

"Okay." Ivan smiled.

They waited for a few moments, the young boy- Matthew Williams- caught awkwardly in between them. Arthur shot a nasty death glare at Ivan, but Ivan deflected it with his creepy wide smile.

"Okay you can leave now Matthew." Arthur commanded.

"Maple..." He whispered.

Then he quickly escaped the dark room with a large amount of haste in his footsteps- obviously not wanting to be caught between the two scary men any longer. Arthur's eyes focused on Matthew as he was leaving, then once he had finally left- he directed his attention back to Ivan.

"I saved your life and yet I get no thanks?" Arthur asked.

"Oh, _sasiba_ Captain Arthur." Ivan smiled.

"So, you speak Russian." Arthur grunted.

"I take it you understand Russian, Captain Arthur."

"Yes, yes I do. But that's not the point. What I want to know is why did Ludwig attack you?"

An eerie silence was what Arthur got in response. Ivan made no effort to respond, he just stayed there with his eyes happily closed and a joyful yet ominous grin painted across his face.

"What are your plans now?"

No response. Just the same closed eyes and evil smile plastered across his face. Arthur was beginning to grow a little impatient, but not majorly irritated like Ludwig was. And somehow, Ivan could sense this- so he spoke.

"I am going to do fighting." He grinned.

"Against?" Arthur asked.

"Ludwig. And his crew of course."

"So you're saying you want to join this ship?"

"_Da_. I want to become one with your crew."

"Alright then, welcome aboard. Just don't go around telling my members you want to become one with them."

"I can't promise anything."

* * *

**Oh isn't Ivan just so funny? The funny thing is, he's not joking. **

**So Arthur saved Ivan! Ludwig betrayed Ivan! And what's going on with that stuff at the beginning? Would anyone care to take a guess? Doesn't matter if you're wrong or not ^^**

**Again I'd like to thank you all for the wonderful reviews which I am about to respond to. Especially my anon 'confederacy' for a most flattering review, though I wouldn't call this story art- just the mad crazy ramblings of a weird fanfiction author ^^**

**Sayonara minna-san!**

**~Neko**


	6. Determination of Hero

**Bonjour! Ah sorry about the lack of updates once more but again, this is my side project, and also it is nearing the end of my school year and tests and exams are beginning to take over. After I've finished uploading this, I've got to get to German and Chemistry revision...**

**Tanoshimu!**

* * *

**Chapter 5: Determination of 'Hero'**

_**'I'll never be a pirate!'**_

* * *

_**Out at sea...**_

"Great. Just great."

He chucked the apple core straight into the ocean lazily and leaned back in his small emergency vessel. Since his close escape from the harbour, the young man had sailed himself in a large amount of directions... All getting himself completely lost in the end and stranded out in the middle of the ocean. It wasn't his smartest move, but could one such as him be expected to be so smart in that situation?

"That was my last apple. Wonder how long it'll be 'till someone saves me? I'm starvin'..." He sighed.

But, as he looked out to the sea which he had thrown the remains of his third and final apple into, a thought dawned upon him. A thought that made him stare up at the vast endless sky in a sad, melancholy disposition. As he did this, he slowly rephrased his question.

"Wonder how long it'll be 'till I die...?" He whispered.

The thought of something like that chilled him to the bone, but it was something he'd probably have to come to terms with soon. So, lying back and closing his eyes, he began to drift off to sleep- curled up slightly in dreams of heroes. And even though he had aspired and tried to be a hero all his life, he found himself desperately wishing someone would be his hero now.

And help wasn't as far as it seemed.

* * *

_**Later...**_

_**Captain Arthur Kirkland's ship...**_

"Mr Kirkland sir?" Ivan called.

The bold captain approached his new crew member sceptically- after all he was originally from another crew. Storming in with his mighty red sea cape swishing at his sides, he turned to the overly happy Russian- wondering why he had summoned him.

"Glad to see you showing respect Braginsky. What did you call me for anyway?" Arthur mumbled.

"Fufufu... Just Ivan is fine sir, and also..." Ivan giggled childishly.

Ivan pointed out to the ocean with a happy smile and Arthur didn't waste any time in shooting the Russian a quick glare before looking in the direction he was pointing.

"When did anyone tell you that you could give the o-"

But then Arthur's voice trailed off as he stared at what Ivan was pointing to. There in the midst of the calm rocking waves was a single wooden boat, and in that a young man probably in his late teens. His hair was dirty blond, and Arthur could just about make out the tranquil, almost angelic look on his sweet face as he lay there with his eyes closed and mouth very slightly open.

"Is that...?" Arthur whispered.

"Another human? _Da_." Ivan smiled.

Arthur looked Ivan up and down with a very slight scowl darkening his face.

"What do you mean 'another'? I really hope you aren't referring to yourself. That would be almost worrying." Arthur grumbled.

"Fufufu... Captain Kirkland, you make the funniest jokes." Ivan chuckled.

"Anyway back to _him_." Arthur muttered. "He's dead right?"

"_Nyet_. He's still breathing, so the boy is just asleep." Ivan explained. "So, shall we bring him in?"

"Hmmm..." Arthur hummed.

It was true that Arthur needed more men to help on the ship and to fight the nasty Captain Ludwig but this kid was a random stranger, so taking him on board may not be the best move to make. But... As Arthur stared more and more at the boy, he felt himself weakening, like that boy _should_ be allowed on the ship. After all, he didn't look evil or malicious, and Arthur certainly felt no suspicion while staring at him.

"Bring him on board." Arthur commanded.

"_Da_, I will go prepare the crew right now." Ivan grinned.

Ivan left but Arthur didn't move. He simply folded his arms and rested himself on the edge of the ship, still looking at the abandoned boy as he tilted his head to the side in curiosity.

* * *

"All hands on deck!" Matthew called at the top of his voice, which not surprisingly, wasn't very loud.

"Quoi? What's going on Matthieu?" Francis asked.

"Well... There's a boy stranded out at sea, and Captain Kirkland has instructed us to help him..." Matthew whispered.

"Oh, I see..." Francis muttered.

Arthur helping people seemed a little out of character to the Frenchman. After all, he had known him a long time and he wasn't a particularly friendly pirate captain. Perhaps the boy had something of value? Or maybe a hidden ability that Arthur could sense? Still none of these solutions seemed right to Francis, and the question continued to plague him even as he helped the other men haul the young boy aboard.

* * *

_**Later...**_

"Mmf..."

The young boy's moan was short, but it took him longer than that to properly wake up. His eyes slowly opened, but then shut again. Once more this process was repeated, until his observer got bored that was.

"Aye, fer pete's sake, hurry up an' wake up or I'll have ye walk the plank before ye can say 'Davy Jones' locker'." The voice snapped.

Naturally, the harsh speech and rough accent made him wake up immediately. He soon discovered that he was lying in a bed- making him shoot up immediately in panic. The blankets were comfy and the bed was both wide and well made. The walls were made of chipped wood and around the room were maps and books- even a few rum bottles which were most likely empty.

And, sitting at his side, was a hunched over man with a large red hat and fluffy feathers. Draped around his shoulders were a bright red coat and underneath that, a white slightly tainted shirt with a pretty ruffled collar and black scruffy trousers. His eyebrows were strangely thick, his eyes were vividly green and his smile looked genuine- with a hint of sly smugness about it. He was, unmistakeably, a pirate.

"I thought ye were a lily-livered buccaneer, or a marooned bilge rat. Either way, I be Captain Arthur Kirkland, an' this mighty vessel be my ship." Arthur explained.

His newly awakened companion did not speak. Why would he want to? He was face to face with a real life pirate-one who thought _he_ was one of _them_. Of course he didn't want to speak. He didn't even want to look at the evil guy.

"So, what be yer name lad?" He asked.

After a long moment of silence, he spoke. But it was not as familiar as the captain was being, nor was it as happy and excited as he had been in the harbour. He spoke with a hint of venom in his voice- a definite unhappy mood about him.

"Why do you speak like that...?" He mumbled.

"...Well because I be a mighty swashbucklin' pirate!" Arthur's pause was only short and filled with a frown before he responded, but his hesitant speech was definitely present- something which the boy took into account.

"Cut the act sea scum. Ya really think ya can fool me? Nu-uh. I can tell you wanna speak normally deep down, that it's your natural way of speakin'. So drop the filthy pirate talk if you expect to get any reaction out of me."

Arthur paused again and opened his mouth to retort. But, deciding he had been beaten, he shut it again and sighed before taking off his hat and resting it on the floor beside him.

"Is this any better? Would you prefer if I spoke like some poxy British gentleman?" Arthur scowled with gritted teeth.

"Ya can insult British gentlemen all ya like but I can tell you aspire to be one deep down, or at least ya used to."

"Looks like there's no fooling you lad." Arthur sighed. "So, you still didn't tell me your name."

"I don't really think I have to either."

"Listen, if you want to be a part of my ship- you'd better do what you're told."

"And who ever said I wanted to be part of this ship? You're all filthy pirates, every single one of you. Why would I ever wanna join? I'll never be a pirate, an' you wanna know why? Cuz I'm the hero, and you guys are villains. It'll never work: I'll never be one of you."

Arthur couldn't quite believe what he was hearing. Filthy pirates? Villains? The hero? He had no idea what he was talking about but the insults were cutting him deep.

"I don't know what you're playing at but trust me 'Hero' if you go spreadin' that around on this ship then one day you'll end up with a knife in your back- and I won't be the one to fish it out or help you in any way." Arthur growled.

"Who said I needed your help?" The hero smiled.

"Why you-"

Arthur raised a hand to point a finger at him, but the hero slapped him away like an annoying little bug- hitting the captain in the face in the process.

"It's kill or be killed, you should know that yourself- _eyebrows_." The 'hero' smirked.

"It's _captain_ to you brat." Arthur snapped.

"Right sorry, _Captain_ Eyebrows." The 'hero' mock-saluted, which was lazily done with his left hand.

The captain's eyes widened at the young boy's insolence, but he made no reaction to it. Instead he got up and left the room- shooting back a glare over his shoulder just before he left.

"Don't say I didn't warn you. However with the attitude you're displaying- I won't be surprised if I turn out to be the one stabbing you in the back." Arthur muttered.

"I look forward to it sir!" The boy beamed- putting on a fake, innocent and child-like voice while giving Arthur an eager wave as he left.

The pure cheek the boy displayed was astounding, but what was even better was his bravery. Never before had he met someone like that- someone so peppy and childish while still not getting scared. Francis teased him regularly of course, but Arthur could quickly intimidate him if he wanted. Ivan often agreed with Arthur's ideas and Matthew, being the most silent and ignored crewmate, never had the courage to stand up to Arthur- or even speak for that matter.

Francis approached Arthur immediately after the captain shut the door to his quarters. He was both intrigued and, though only slightly, concerned. The red mark was intensifying on Arthur's face, the place where the boy had slapped him.

"'Ow is 'e?" Francis asked.

"Very much alive." Arthur muttered.

"What shall we do with 'im?" Francis frowned.

"Take him down to the brig. He'll do nicely down there." Arthur smiled.

"Oui captain." Francis nodded.

Arthur turned to walk away but as he did Francis couldn't help but call out to the captain once more before carrying out his orders. One thing was still on his mind, one very important thing...

"Wait! Arthur... Who is 'e?" Francis called.

Arthur turned back with a smug- almost hiding a secret sort of smile. Of course he hadn't been told his name, but Arthur knew full well what they were going to call him.

"He is... Hero. Call him Hero." Arthur smiled.

"'Ero? Is zat really 'is name?" Francis asked.

"Well if you aren't happy with that, then believe me I have much worse things to call him."

"No no, zat is fine."

Then Arthur left but Francis still paused for a few moments before carrying out his orders. The name rang out in Francis's head over and over like the words of a song. _Hero... Hero..._ That boy was Hero...

...Why did the title sound so familiar to Francis?

* * *

**So we have a name for the boy in the harbour. It seems his name is 'Hero' but what is his real name? Obviously you guys all know he's called Alfred but the other guys don't know that so let's keep it a secret, shall we? ;)**

**Make sure you review! Honestly the nice reviews I get from this are making me think that maybe I should pay more attention to this and not just treat it as a side project!**

**Thanks to Lord Kharl and Ashe-Kuro for reviewing!**

**Sayonara minna-san!**

**~Neko**


	7. Hero and Captain Eyebrows

**Hola! I really like this different greeting every time thing...**

**Sorry again about the lack of updates. It's just since this is a side project and I've been writing things that I haven't even released yet instead of this. But I've decided to put a stop to that and so I will not upload any of those others until this, As Long as We're Brothers and Britannia-Hime have finished. When As Long as We're Brothers is gone, this story will become more of a priority.**

**Until then...**

**Tanoshimu!**

_**P.S I'm also sorry if I haven't responded to you, but that should all change soon. I hope I won't lose any reviews over it...**_

* * *

**Chapter 6: Hero and Captain Eyebrows**

_**Learning to show a little gratitude...**_

* * *

Weeks had passed since the new addition had been made to the crew and still Arthur had not shattered his confidence like intended. Hero, as they had nicknamed him, remained as happy and annoyingly carefree as he had been when first brought aboard the ship- a fact that made Arthur extremely frustrated when he ever even thought about it.

Every crew member knew him as Hero, and Hero knew the crew members he had met by his own personal names he had allocated to them. Francis of course was Frog, for that was what everyone called him. He called Ivan 'V man' which seriously annoyed Ivan to the point where he began to curse him every time the two saw each other.

And thankfully, that wasn't often due to the fact that Arthur had imprisoned Hero in the brig. Not many visited him. Francis did occasionally to 'lift his spirits' though it always turned out to be flirting- something which Hero couldn't quite understand. Ivan only visited him to curse him further and, every now and then, Toris (Ivan's servant who he had kidnapped along with two others) would visit him to deliver things like food and occasionally presents.

So Hero didn't have much way of knowing what was going on above ship. He had no idea that shortly after he had been taken aboard, another man had been found- practically worn out and paddling his way through the ocean on just a small yet sturdy piece of driftwood that had become a makeshift boat.

It was Wang Yao, the poor man being attacked in the harbour.

When he and the captain had first met, the Captain studied him carefully with a hint of disgust. Wang Yao's clothes had been ripped and torn, shredded by the harsh time he had spent out at sea. It was a miracle that he had survived, but this of course, didn't impress Arthur Kirkland. He looked down his nose at the Asian man as Yao stood there looking pleading and pitiful with Ivan Braginsky's firm hands placed on either of his shoulders.

"Ahoy thar, what makes ye think ye can beg to come aboard my ship and get away with it?" Arthur smirked.

"I-I am Wang Yao..." He whispered.

"Are ye now? Well matey, ye ain't gonna get yerself a place in my crew like that. Pitiful ye are, why should I let you in?" Arthur spat.

"Please-aru..." Yao whimpered.

"Hmm?" Arthur frowned.

Yao got into a bowing position at his feet, grovelling before Arthur Kirkland which surprised him greatly.

"Please. I want to join to get revenge on an old foe of mine-aru. I'll do anything." Yao explained.

"Is that right? Well I don't care about your revenge. Why should I? I have business of my own, landlubber. You're pleadin' with the wrong person matey." Arthur muttered.

He turned and began to walk away but Yao's face darkened into an angry scowl and he jumped up instantly, pulling out his wok and readying himself to strike.

"Don't test me-aru. I was trying to appeal to your good nature, your inner gentleman, but if you push me then I can be very violent-aru." Yao growled.

"Hmph. How is it that everyone sees through to my gentleman side? Look Yao, I'd love to help you, but tell me one thing: how does this concern me and my crew? We can't afford to waste time, not these days." Arthur sighed, stopping at the same time but not bothering to look back at the angered Chinese man.

"Because last I heard of my enemy, Honda Kiku, he's joined a pirate crew." Yao explained.

"Uh-huh. Look Yao, we've dealt with every crew out there with only a few exceptions. What makes this crew worth our time?" Arthur mumbled.

"Because this is the crew of Captain Ludwig."

* * *

_**Meanwhile...**_

"Huh, who's there?"

Hero had heard footsteps. They were vague, but definite so there was someone there. The steps weren't flamboyant or exaggerated enough to be Francis, nor were they slow and eerie like Ivan. It definitely wasn't Toris because he usually came at scheduled times but those three were the only ones that ever visited him. Well... Actually Arthur visited him from time to time but usually Hero would just insult him and he'd be gone within a minute. Who else could it be?

"Show yourself, filthy pirate!" Hero growled.

"W-well that's not very nice... I do wash and everything, just like Francis tells me to..." A voice whispered.

The source of the voice reached the bottom of the stairs and Hero frowned. It was a guy... That looked like him? His hair was a little longer and he had a curl which spiralled down weirdly but he still had the same hair colour and glasses. Although he did have one thing different: in his hands was a white polar bear staring at Hero intently.

"Who are you?" Hero asked.

The boy flinched a little. "Why does everyone always ask me that question...? Even the people I've met before..."

"Dude chill. I've never even met ya before." Hero laughed.

"Well... I'm... Matthew and I work as Surgeon aboard this ship." Matthew explained.

"Kay, so why are ya coming down to see me Mattie?" Hero asked.

"M-Mattie?" Matthew stuttered. "Never mind. I came to tell you to... To be nice to Mr Kirkland..."

"Why? He's a stupid pirate and I'll never be or work with a pirate!" Hero pouted.

"Well you may feel that way... But he still brought you aboard this ship and I think you should be nicer. After all, he never usually lets people on his ship unless they can benefit him in some way."

"Wait, really?"

"Really. Usually he'll just get rid of them and sell them off, even when they seemed able to work to his standards. It's really quite odd that he let you on board. You should be a little more grateful."

"Okay okay! Geez, you need to quit lecturing me like you're my mother or my brother or something."

At this point, Matthew flinched and froze up suddenly just as he had done before. He clutched Kumajiro a little tighter and smiled slowly.

"S-sorry I didn't realise."

Then Matthew left the room quickly without another word, leaving Hero completely confused.

"Realise what?" Hero frowned.

* * *

_**The next day...**_

Hero was awakened the very next day by a slightly louder series of footsteps descending the stairs. This time it wasn't Francis, Ivan, Toris or even Matthew. Hero groggily rubbed his eyes having just woken up and looked to the man who had just entered the room.

"Really. Still asleep. You do realise what time it is in the afternoon right?" The man sighed.

It was Captain Arthur Kirkland looking as mean and sour as ever.

"Huh?" Hero asked.

"Whatever." Arthur sighed. "So! Any new insults for today?"

"Wha-?" Hero began.

"Want to take a jab at my eyebrows? My clothes? My pirate accent?" Arthur suggested.

"What are you...?"

"Really, are you actually going to say something to me? Or are you just going to be stupid all day long?"

"Y'know you sound a lot better without the crappy pirate voice."

"What do you mean cra-? Hey at least I don't speak like I've never even heard of the Queen's English!"

"The Queen's wha-?"

"Just forget it. Aren't you going to insult me then?"

"Arthur I... Th-thanks."

Arthur was genuinely surprised. That was the nicest thing Hero had ever said to him since joining the ship. '_Thanks_'... Arthur couldn't quite believe what he had just heard.

"Wh-what?" Arthur whispered.

"I said thanks. Happy?" Hero pouted.

Arthur smiled at the young boy's cuteness. Getting ready to leave, he stood up and reached his hand through the bars, ruffling up Hero's already messy hair. Hero just scowled and hugged his knees tighter as the Captain messed with his hair playfully.

"Very much so, young Hero." Arthur laughed.

Then he left the room, smiling to himself as he did so and- though he didn't mean to, Hero was smiling as well as he looked back over his shoulder at the pirate Captain. It sure was nice to see him being friendly. Perhaps showing gratitude wasn't such a bad idea.

* * *

**Canada's getting a little more screen time! I just love him in this fic- he's such a help and he's very loyal to Arthur and Francis, even if they are pirates. Hmm... Now I'm picturing Kumajirou with a bandanna and eyepatch. He isn't actually wearing that but it's cute to picture right?**

**After updating, I actually feel a little more motivated to do this thing! I haven't even properly introduced the main plot yet! (Which, by the way, no-one seems to have figured out).**

**Thanks to Ashe-Kuro and MDWOLFGIRL for reviewing!**

**Sayonara minna-san!**

**~Neko**


	8. Of wisdom? Or madness?

******Halló! That's hello in Icelandic (sorry I really like Iceland at the moment... And Sealand).**

******I've had more motivation for this ever since the last update! I didn't think this chapter was that great. Maybe it was a little rushed? Then again I do need to move it along so I can have even more vague foreshadowing (which, by the way, will also be in this chapter).**

******Tanoshimu!**

* * *

**Chapter 7: Of wisdom? Or madness?**

_**In which strange voices are heard**_

* * *

"Good morning Hero." Arthur muttered.

"G'mornin' Cap'n Eyebrows!" Hero beamed.

"Still as painfully cheerful as ever I see." Arthur sighed.

"Still a grumpy old man I see!" Hero laughed in retort.

That is how most of their conversations started: Arthur would start with a polite greet and Hero would do the same. Then Arthur would point out one of Hero's nagging flaws and Hero would do the same for him. After that would just be filled with silence until one of them thought of something to say and then the conversation would go from there. It became sort of like a trend really- like a rule. It started off as only once at the end of every week. Then it became more frequent as Arthur got more of an urge to see him. The routine escalated like that until it became a daily thing and the two were seeing each other every day.

They talked about all sorts of things. Somehow the need for conversations never grew old and their reserve of topics never ran dry. The two would just discuss what they felt like, and oddly enough it always seemed to interest them both. Sometimes they would discuss things relevant to them both- like the crew.

* * *

"So we got a new member the other day." Arthur mumbled.

"Yeah?" Hero smiled.

"Yes, he's very nice. A great cook. Possibly even a little better than me." Arthur explained.

"Dude, you? Cook? I'd like ta see that someday." Hero grinned.

"Mm. Maybe one day I'll treat you to my special brand of cooking."

"I look forward to it."

* * *

If only Hero had realised what he was saying. But sometimes they would get bored of crew gossip and they would discuss the future. Their ambitions, their dreams...

* * *

"And so I guess I'm happy being a pirate, but I wish there were some greater calling out there. Something I'm destined for. Sadly that's a rather silly thought, so someday I guess I'd like to fall in love, settle down and maybe have children." Arthur explained.

"D'you reckon you'd be good with kids?" Hero asked.

"I can handle you can't I?" Arthur smirked.

"HEY! I'm not a kid!" Hero snapped.

"Funny, you sure whine like one..."

* * *

Occasionally they'd discuss more personal matters- like love.

* * *

"One day I hope I meet a nice girl who can respect my heroism and love me for who I am at the same time. Prob'ly a damsel in distress or somethin'." Hero sighed happily.

"Wait you mean you've never met anyone you like?" Arthur frowned.

"Nope. Never. You? I'm you've met some pretty pirate chicks right?" Hero beamed.

"W-well I uh... Uhh..." Arthur stuttered.

It was now obvious that Captain Arthur Kirkland- the man who never got too close, the man who was ruthless and barbaric, the man who had sailed and was known for miles around- was blushing. Quite noticeably so too. In fact it was so noticeable that even Hero, who failed to read the atmosphere most of the time, could notice it.

"I... I haven't met anyone." Arthur muttered.

"Whoa really? Unexpected." Hero nodded.

"Yes, so go ahead and laugh." Arthur sighed.

"Actually, that's fine. It's better to wait for someone you love than to go around with people you don't love right?" Hero asked.

"Have you met Francis?" Arthur joked.

Then the two burst into fits of laughter. At the expense of Francis of course. It was a good friendship the two of them had, and they soon came to know each other very well.

But throughout the duration of the time they had known each other, three things were very wrong with them and their friendship.

First of all was the fact that they never spoke about their past. They'd touch upon more recent years, but they'd never discuss things like childhood or family. There was a specific reason for that, one that they shared- even if they didn't know it.

Secondly, Arthur never let Hero be free from the prison. He never even mentioned his freedom. To him, this seemed normal. He barely noticed the steel bars between him and Hero. And, though one wouldn't think it, Hero barely noticed it either.

The final point was small, yet possibly the most important: Arthur never asked for Hero's real name. To him, he was Hero. That was his name. He'd grown to like the name, and barely realised it was only a nickname he had created on a whim.

So Hero never asked for freedom, and Arthur never asked for his name. It was almost like a deal- an unspoken pact that they had subconsciously agreed on. That was the way it seemed to stay for the next month.

That is, until Captain Kirkland decided to change things.

It was a rather odd decision, one that all the crew members were puzzled by and figured the Captain would have to have some amazing reasoning behind it.

But there was no amazing reasoning, for this is how it was decided:

* * *

It was just another simple day. Arthur was calmly sitting in the captain's quarters, legs slightly parted and checking over the ship's records quietly.

That was when it happened.

"Ar... Ur..."

Someone, or something was calling out his name. He looked up and around curiously.

"Someone there?" He asked.

"...N...D..."

"Matthew? That you my lad?" Arthur frowned.

"Ar...Ur... Let... Free... Free... Dom..." The voice whispered.

"Freedom?"

"He...Ro..."

"Hero?"

Then the voice faded away and Arthur was left alone again. It was strange. He had never heard these voices before, why were they appearing to him now? The voices sounded new, odd, exotic yet Arthur never felt any need to raise his sword or be on guard.

But why was he hearing them now and on Captain Ludwig's ship?

Suddenly the door opened and in walked Francis. He looked concerned: his brow was knitted into a frown of worry. Arthur just stood there-speechless and staring at the wooden planked floor.

"Arthur, is somezing ze matter?" Francis asked.

"Where's Hero?" He asked.

"In ze brig, as usual. You know zat. Why?" Francis frowned.

"Move him. Move him out of the brig. Put him where there's room." Arthur mumbled.

"...Oui captain."

* * *

_**Later...**_

"So you can sleep in that bed... I will sleep below. Please make yourself at home, and if you need anything- just tell me."

As Matthew explained all this, he kept his hands tightly wrapped around his polar bear and didn't take his eyes off Hero.

In all honesty, Hero had no idea what was going on. First he and Captain Kirkland were acquaintances, constantly insulting each other every moment they were together, then they were friends- discussing topics to do with their life with an occasional insult here and there and now Arthur had suddenly moved him out of prison with no warning or heads up.

Well at least his new room was certainly an improvement in comparison to his cell. It may not have seemed that spacious, but that was probably due to the fact that this room was actually furnished. His cell had not been much. Just a dirty, dimly lit place with a corner for him to sleep in and a few empty food bowls scattered about the place. Matthew's room was different. There was a bunk bed at the back of the room and to the right of it a set of drawers. At the end of the room was a small circular window that was looking out to sea and below it was a small chest. In the centre of the room was a rather fancy looking carpet and in one corner were two small barrels positioned like seating chairs in a living room. In the remaining corner was a small pile of soft comfortable looking sheets- most likely to make a bed for Matthew's polar bear.

But the thing that really piqued Hero's interest was the chest underneath the circular window. It looked very pirate-like- sort of like the typical kind of chest that you'd expect pirates to find in 'X-marks-the-spot' places. Hero wondered what was inside, what secrets Matthew had that needed to be kept secret. So he decided to ask. He'd pluck up his courage and ask. That is, if it weren't for what happened next.

"Matthieu! We are under attack!" Francis called, dashing into Matthew's room in a flurry of panic.

"Is it..." Matthew whispered.

Francis gave a grim look and nodded. Matthew paled slightly, holding onto his white fluffy creature for dear life. Hero looked puzzled and confused- after all he knew nothing of the person or people attacking, nor did he have any idea of who Matthew presumed it to be. Hero was completely in the dark. Something he planned to change very quickly.

* * *

"Eyebrows!"

Rudely, Hero burst into Captain Kirkland's room with no warning except for the fast-paced pitter-patter of his noisy feet against the wooden floorboards. Arthur simply let out a loud sigh and glared at Hero with annoyance.

"Really, you have to make such a racket and uproar when entering a room. Can't you learn to be a little more-" Arthur began.

"Captain, is it really true that we're being attacked? Who's attacking us? Why now? And why... Why did you move me so suddenly from the brig?" Hero blurted out all at once.

"So many questions, so little time." Arthur sighed. "You said it yourself: we're under attack. And I have neither the time nor the patience to answer your tedious questions."

"But-" Hero began.

"Enough. Now go hide yourself in the kitchen or something along with Matthew." Arthur instructed.

"I refuse."

"What?"

"Don't you know anything about me? I'm the hero that this ship needs, I won't just go hide somewhere!"

The determination of this boy was fascinating- inspirational even. Within him was a certain spark, a fire of confidence blazing deep inside him. It was nothing like the boy he had first met. The boy with the eyes like icy glaciers, the expression like cold steel. A new type of Hero had awoken, or rather re-awoken for Arthur had a feeling that this was the real Hero.

And Arthur knew he was the one that had lured him out, the one who had sparked that fire. It was certainly a good feeling, and good feelings were not ones that Arthur experienced often.

"You... You really are an idiot you know that?" Arthur smirked.

"Hey I'm not an idiot!" Hero frowned.

"Oh? You sure about that?"

"Positive! After all..."

Then Hero lifted his hand and pointed his thumb upwards, giving the captain a thumbs-up with his right hand and placing his other hand on his hip dramatically.

"I'm the hero!"

* * *

**Anyone else see that coming? Thought so. It was epic though right? Don't you just love America? I mean, Hero.**

**Don't worry, I won't be calling the guy Hero for much longer, though personally I do like how they call him Hero. But anyway, onto other matters: who here likes NiChu? And who here likes RoChu? Now who would like a Chu pairing in this story?**

**Recently, I've gotten back into RoChu. But I do still ship NiChu. I am happy to add either in, or none at all but I'd like to hear what you guys think! I've posted a poll on my profile to ask you guys what you think so be sure to vote there! Votes here will not count.**

**Thanks to MYJEN123 and Ashe-Kuro for reviewing!**

**Sayonara minna-san!**

**~Neko**


	9. The missing gift

**Dzien dobry! That's hello in Polish! Today's chapter has the fight everyone has been waiting for! ...Okay maybe not everyone.**

**I'm still a little surprised actually. None of you have managed to figure out the major plot twist I have planned. Not even after all the vague foreshadowing I included! I'd like to say I'm some kind of creative genius of master at writing but... That's just too funny XD Plus I don't have an ego the size of Prussia's. (P.S I do mean Prussia's ego, what on earth were _you_ thinking?)**

**So today's chapter includes more vague foreshadowing! And if I'm feeling generous, I'll help you guys out with trying to crack this thing!**

**Tanoshimu!**

* * *

**Chapter 8: The missing gift**

_**Where lives are saved and presents are demanded**_

* * *

"Are you sure you're ready for this?" Arthur frowned.

"Dude I was born ready!" Hero beamed.

"Alright then. By the way, you're holding that cutlass wrong." Arthur smirked.

Hero looked down and saw he was holding the odd shaped sword on the knife end. Embarrassed, he quickly switched it round, earning a small laugh from the captain.

But the cutlass... The last time Hero had picked one up, he had shamed himself. It was then and there he decided to never become a pirate, to never look like one, to have no affiliation with them whatsoever. Yet there he was now, on a pirate ship, with a cutlass and backed up by pirates. How did this happen? How could he even begin to figure out how this had happened?

But the answer, of course, was very simple. This had all been happening because of the Captain, Arthur Kirkland. The man who he had decided was his enemy, who he had insulted and lashed out at. Things had changed, but were these changes good or bad? Was this for better or for worse?

"There he is!" Arthur called.

Then he saw it: another pirate's ship. It looked like Arthur's, but in Hero's opinion- theirs was grander, prouder and far better than that ship could ever hope to be. They were the villains in this little tale, and it was up to their crew to be the heroes.

"CHARGE!" Arthur roared.

Then all at once, the members charged furiously towards Ludwig's ship (most of them did anyway, Ivan kind of hopped on board and walked over to his enemies with a huge creepy smile). Hero found himself being swept up in the chaos too. He charged towards the lame villains with a burning fire in his chest, one he was planning to release on that evil ship.

Once he got on, he quickly looked about. He watched as Arthur slashed eagerly at the rival captain. He had never seen such passion- such hatred in anyone's eyes. He looked at the other captain with intent to kill, a desire that could never be calmed until one of them rested at the bottom of the deep blue sea.

Then he saw him. Fighting mercilessly off in the distance- it was him. Yao. The man from the harbour. He was fighting just as he had done that day, just with more energy and a new spark which fired him up greatly.

...He was so busy watching Yao fight he didn't notice the person jumping forward to attack him from the side.

* * *

**?**

"_HEY EN-!"_

"_Not so bloody loud!" The other man snapped as he shut his book and slammed it down in annoyance. "You'll wake the entire ship!"_

_Neither man made any comment on how the second was being equally as loud. It seemed the first had missed the chance for a good hypocritical comment. Not that he cared anyway, after all he was there for one purpose only._

"_Dude! How come _I_ didn't get anything?" He whined in a rather child-like way. "Even Mario an' Weegee got somethin'!"_

"_Last time I checked, the twins were not called that." His companion sighed as he got up. "Honestly, do you bother with any personal details apart from your own?"_

"_You're changing the subject!" The whiny man complained. "Why didn't you get me anything?"_

_The taller, whinier and by far louder man was obviously upset- he made no effort in trying to hide that fact. His shorter companion was obviously annoyed. Who wouldn't be when an annoying person barged their way into your room and invaded your privacy? He wanted him out, but he knew from experience that the persistent taller man wasn't one to say no easily._

"_That's beside the point of all this." The smaller man sighed._

"_Dude, it is the point. Quit tryin' to hide it, hurry up an' tell me!" His intruder demanded._

"_I see no reason for why I had to get you something." Sniffed the other rather snootily as he turned away with disgust. "Now if you don't mind, I'm going to-"_

_But the conflicted smaller man was cut off, for at that moment his rude intruder pushed him down until they fell onto his bed. His rude guest now had him pinned down and they were staring at each other eye-to-eye._

"_I do mind, as a matter of fact..."_

* * *

"Ah!" Hero gasped.

Thankfully, he sensed something was wrong and realised he was being attacked just in time. He grabbed the blade between his two hands and stared into the eyes of his attacker.

"You!" Hero gasped.

"It seems you are arive... For now." Kiku muttered.

Kiku pulled out his katana from Hero's grip and glared at him with such fierce and burning rage. Hero drew out his cutlass and glared back- determined to prove he was not some weak pushover, that he couldn't be killed so easily.

"I see you have joined these evil pirates, even though you wanted to be a hero." Kiku mumbled.

"I-I am a hero!" Hero yelled.

"What kind of hero associates himself with evil people?" Kiku frowned. "What kind of a hero are you?"

Then Kiku began to attack again, but this time Hero was more prepared. He defended every attack Kiku made with a simple swish of his pirate cutlass. Now he knew what Yao had felt like the day when he was being attacked by the same man. Kiku really didn't know how to show mercy in battle, to him death did not matter, for he felt no emotion for his enemies.

"I am waiting to hear your answer." Kiku growled as he slashed away. "What kind of a hero are you?"

"I...I..." Hero stuttered.

Kiku had got him again. What could he say? What kind of a hero was he? Then their swords came into contact and while Kiku was pushing offensively- threatening to slice Hero in half, he found his answer.

"I'm... I'm my own kind of hero!" Hero yelled.

Then he pushed Kiku back with such overwhelming force that he barely had any time to process what was going on. Kiku fell back onto his front and turned his head to look at Hero. The boy had a sudden urge to deal the finishing blow.

But... Could he really bring himself to do something that evil?

"ARGH!"

A cry of extreme pain and suffering reached Hero's ears. He turned quickly to see Arthur there on the ground. The rival captain with the cold blue eyes and neat blond hair had his sword raised in preparation for the final swipe.

"Arthur!" Hero called.

Forgetting about Kiku, Hero immediately ran towards Arthur watching in horror as the other captain prepared to strike. In less than an instant, Hero was there to save Arthur and he scooped him up quick like a damsel in distress. He escaped with only a chunk of his clothing missing- cut off by Ludwig's blade.

"Retreat!" Hero called.

All the heads of Arthur's crew suddenly raised and at once they all began making their individual escape plans. Hero smoothly dodged another attack from Ludwig by sidestepping quickly with cat-like reflexes. He looked down at the wounded captain in his arms, staring as his green eyes slowly flickered open.

"Wha... What the-? Where am I?" Arthur asked.

"Retreating." Hero smiled.

"Wha- WHY?" Arthur snapped.

"Dude, you were about to die. I saved your ass dude!" Hero laughed.

"No you bloody didn't! Put me down! I can still take-ah!" Arthur made a moan of pain.

"Looks like you won't be takin' anything with injuries like that!"

"I'll take _you_ in a minute!"

"Somehow, that doesn't scare me."

Then Hero ran back to their ship with Arthur in his arms. He had saved a man from death. If it weren't for him, Arthur- or at least the remains of him would be on Captain Ludwig's ship. He had saved Arthur's life, a fact that he was extremely proud of.

He hadn't even noticed that Francis had also been trying to save the Captain.

* * *

_**Later...**_

"He gonna be okay?" Hero asked.

"He'll be fine. You're worrying too much." Matthew smiled.

"I-I'm not worryin' about that old guy!" Hero protested.

"If you say so." Matthew shrugged his shoulders.

Hero looked down at Arthur's sleeping form. Most of his wounds had been bandaged up and the occasional plaster was dotted around on his body. He was certainly not in a good state when he had been rescued, but was definitely better now that Matthew had taken care of him.

"That's all I can do for him for now." Matthew explained, standing up to leave the room. "...Are you... Going to stay here?"

"I might for a bit." Hero muttered.

"Well okay. Me and Kuma are going to bed." Matthew explained.

"Night." Hero waved.

Then Matthew left with his polar bear in his arms. Hero looked down at Arthur. Asleep, he didn't look like much of a threat. He looked calm, angelic- maybe even...

"What are you doing?"

He woke up. Obviously the staring was a little too much. It looked as if Arthur had sensed it. Hero struggled to find a good excuse for what he was doing. After all, it isn't easy to explain to someone why you were staring at them as they slept.

"I was uh..." Hero muttered.

"You were watching me sleep, weren't you?" Arthur sighed.

"Nu-uh!" Hero yelled.

"Oh do be quiet will you?" Arthur growled, clutching his head in pain. "Your annoying voice isn't exactly a miracle cure to this blasted headache."

"O-oh... Sorry." Hero muttered.

"It's fine. At least you know now." Arthur sighed.

* * *

**N'awwwz... Those two are so cute... I was half expecting America to say "I'm one hell of a hero" anyone else? Black Butler is really creeping its way into my writing nowadays, darn that sexy butler...**

**Okay! Now I'm gonna be generous and point out things you should note when reading this story. It might help you figure out the plot twist. If you don't wanna read this, then I'd kindly ask you to go to the bottom and start reviewing!**

**Right, first thing to note: the bits in italics that start with '?' Really, pay attention to those because they're important. Second thing, chapter 7 when Mattie meets Hero. Pay attention to the part when he leaves. Third, notice how Arthur is multilingual. Fourth, Kiku has a katana. It's kind of pirate times and pirates aren't generally Japanese (unless it's One Piece but that's anime) so how did he get that katana? The last clue, the voices Arthur keeps hearing. IU would have hoped you guys have noticed that already.**

**Thanks to Ashe-Kuro, MDWOLFGIRL, Girl-of-Action and escritoria for reviewing!**

**Sayonara minna-san!**

**~Neko**


	10. Making the wrong assumptions

**Bună Ziua! Today's greeting is Romanian! And also in today's chapter, I'll be hinting a little more at the plot twist. **

**However! I'd like to make one final big decision in this story. I'll tell you more at the end to stop me from ranting here but I'd just like to draw your attention to it first. With that out of the way...**

**Tanoshimi!**

* * *

**Chapter 9: Making the wrong assumptions**

_**Rash decisions are made, and friends are lost**_

* * *

For a few moments, Hero was silent. Arthur didn't even think that was possible for one like him. But apparently it was and Arthur was beginning to feel himself give in to the pressure of the awkward silence. He had to say something. He just had to.

"So, what exactly are you doing here Hero?" Arthur asked.

"Oh well, I was just..." Hero began.

The Captain raised a large, all-knowing eyebrow. "Oh? Were you perhaps worried about me?"

"No! Dude, why would I ever worry about you?" Hero yelled.

"Oh do be quiet will you?" Arthur sighed, clutching his head in his one hand.

"Oops, sorry Captain..." Hero whispered.

Although, Hero couldn't help but wonder if that pained sorrowful look upon Arthur's dark face was actually due to hurt from his comment before and not because of the noise.

"It's alright." He muttered, sitting up in the bed. "Why don't you come and sit by me?"

Arthur patted the empty side of the bad next to him with his healthy hand and then proceeded to start making himself comfortable in a sat up position. Reluctantly, Hero went to sit himself on the bed, his feet firm on the floor, facing away from Arthur and his back slouched casually.

"Uh, thanks... Captain." Hero mumbled.

"You do know you saved my life... Don't you?" Arthur frowned. "You don't really need to call me Captain. And I was pretty sure we were on a first name basis."

"...Yeah..." Hero whispered.

But Hero knew that deep down, that wasn't true. Arthur called him Hero- not his real name. Hero was a nickname Arthur had created out of mockery at first. Yet Arthur had been kind and hadn't tried to force his name out. He had respected his privacy and carried on with their friendship- thinking it was completely normal.

"You know you didn't sound awfully keen when you spoke just then. Nothing like your usual self." Arthur pointed out.

Hero stayed silent. It was almost scary for Arthur.

"...Hero?"

"Alfred."

"Huh?"

'Hero' let out a long sigh and turned around to face Arthur.

"My name's Alfred."

It was so sudden- Arthur didn't really know how to react. Hero was...Alfred? That was his real name?

"A... Al... Fred?" Arthur whispered.

"Yeah, Alfred. Not Hero. I just thought you should know that." Alfred muttered.

"Well thank you He- I mean, Alfred." Arthur smiled.

"Hey you can call me Hero if ya want!" Alfred laughed. "In fact I like the sound of it! After all, I _am_ the hero so it's only fitting!"

"I think I'll just call you Alfred. After all, I don't see much point in using your nickname now that I know your real name. I will call you Alfred and it will be our little secret if you want."

"Aww..." Alfred whined. "But I was beginning to like Hero..."

"Tell you what, I'll let you call me whatever you want- though not Eyebrows or any variation of that please because it almost sounds as if you're trying to mock me then."

"Okay, not Eyebrows. I gotcha. Hmmm..."

Alfred began to think for a bit. What could he call Arthur? Up until then, he had been perfectly content with calling the Captain something nasty or just Arthur. What would he call him now?

But Alfred didn't need to think long. In fact, the new name came to him within a few short moments.

"Artie!" Alfred declared.

"A-Artie?" Arthur stuttered in disbelief.

"Yup. And no objections 'cuz you said I could call ya what I want!" Alfred grinned.

"I guess..." Arthur muttered.

"Then Artie it is!" Alfred beamed.

Slowly Alfred's wide grin became a small, happy smile and his eyelids began to droop as his head slowly fell to the pillow next to Arthur's.

"Artie..." He whispered.

Within just a few seconds, he was asleep. Alfred couldn't help but give him a sympathetic smile as he watched Alfred's sleeping form: his peaceful angelic expression, his slightly open mouth and (this probably being the sweetest part) his slow steady breathing- his chest puffing out and falling in an almost endless cycle.

"Looks like someone's sleepy." Arthur smirked. "But then again you would be. You've fought bravely today and you even saved my life. You've done well He-" And then he stopped himself, correcting himself with a smile.

"Alfred..."

Arthur reached out and stroked his dirty blond hair, running a finger across his cheek and to his lips.

"Sleep well poppet." He whispered.

Then he lowered himself back into the bed and rolled over- being careful on his nasty wounds. He lifted the oil lamp on his bedside table, ready to rid the room of light and drift off to sleep.

"Goodnight, and sweet dreams Alfred..." He smiled.

Then he blew out the flickering flame and he too shut his eyes, drifting off almost instantly.

* * *

**Three years ago...**

* * *

"He's in there." Matthew whispered. "I'll be out here if you need anything sir."

"Merci Matthieu, and you know... You do not 'ave to call me sir. Just Francis is fine." Explained the Frenchman.

"Okay then Francis..." Matthew nodded.

Then Francis gave a small nod of agreement before stepping into the room and locking the door behind him. Once inside, he took a moment to observe his surroundings.

It was a rather dull and murky little room. The bricks were a depressing grey, the walls were damp and dirty and the floor looked grimy, as well as being really gross. Former occupants had carved their names along with tally charts counting the days and various profanities into the decrepit walls. Traces of a suspicious red paint could also be seen every now and then. The room was practically bare apart from all of this though, and its only redeeming feature seemed to be the square yet barred window at the very top of this room.

All in all, Francis saw the place as simply horrible. The idea of having to spend an hour in this hell hole was scary- he could barely even imagine the torture of having to spend a whole day in this room. In fact, he doubted anyone could survive here.

That's when Francis saw him.

He was sat in a slump. His clothes were torn and frayed but Francis could see the dull remains of a formal shirt, a few of his buttons lost and his collar messy. The hems of his posh looking trousers were ripped and his once shiny shoes were clearly falling apart- this was Francis's first sight of him. In fact, he was in a rather pitiful state with his head hanging depressingly low and his hands just hanging over his bent legs, all chained up so that he couldn't escape.

And then he looked up. It was the most memorable moment of their first meeting. His glare was cold and piercing, his eyes were green and narrowed- but, most notably, his eyebrows were amazingly huge.

That was when Francis first met Arthur Kirkland.

"Bonjour!" Francis beamed, raising his hands dramatically.

Another ice cold glare. Francis however was unaffected by his harsh behaviour. So he simply continued.

"My name is Francis Bonnefoy." Francis smiled.

Still nothing was said by the captive. But Francis did not allow himself to be disheartened and so he moved hastily along. The Frenchman's persistence and determination was beginning to annoy the imprisoned man and Francis, despite being aware of this, continued.

"I 'ave only seen your face on wanted posters. A pleasure, Monsieur Kirkland."

Then Francis offered Arthur his hand, implying that he wanted Arthur to shake it. Arthur merely stared at the hand, his expression staying blank as he continued to stare.

"Monsieur Kirkland?" Francis asked.

Then Arthur looked up. His glare seemed to have vanished and his eyes had opened a little wider. In Francis's mind, he looked like a clueless child, and clueless wasn't that far off from the truth.

"Me?" Arthur questioned, tilting his head to the side.

"Well you are Arthur Kirkland, non?" Francis smirked.

"That's what they tell me." He muttered as his head drooped again.

Francis raised an eyebrow: he had not been expecting this. He had been expecting some kind of attempt to escape, or perhaps some unprovoked attack, because that certainly seemed like something this man would do. But nothing of the sort happened. Was this really the same man he was looking for?

"You mean you don't know?" Francis frowned.

_This man... Could he be...?_ Francis thought to himself quietly. _He shows the obvious signs of it... _If his assumptions were correct then perhaps... Just maybe... This man might be... Innocent?

Then, deciding to take the risk, he held up the two small keys in his hand.

"You see zese?" Francis asked, causing Arthur to nod in reply. "Zey are ze keys to your freedom."

Arthur didn't really look bothered by this however and merely switched his gaze to another random corner of the dark dingy room.

"Zey are planning to 'ang you." Francis whispered. "And I believe zat you do not deserve to 'ang. So, what I am going to do is zis: I will release you from zose chains and I will unlock ze door. You shall zen make your escape. Do you understand?"

"Why are you...?" Arthur began.

"Zat is for me to know." Francis muttered as he crouched down to unlock his chains. "And for you to find out."

* * *

**Present day**

* * *

It was the morning after Arthur had discovered Hero's true identity. But of course, none of the other crew members knew this. In fact, it was just another normal Sunday morning for most of the crew.

But Francis however, was not like most of the crew. It was no secret that Francis flirted with the captain on a regular basis. It also wasn't a secret that Arthur had been the victim of Francis's affections ever since they had first met. The secret was that Francis really was in love with Arthur, no matter how much he teased or joked.

And so that was why Francis had gotten up early that morning: to serve Arthur breakfast in bed. This was it. Today was the day. No-one else realised that this particular lazy morning was something special for Francis. Despite the fact that he had been planning this whole thing for a while now.

Yes. Today was the day that Francis would confess. He would admit his true feelings to the pirate Captain.

"Arthu-"

But he had expected nothing like this.

Lying there in Arthur's bed was the infamous Hero who had gained a reputation on the ship as the only man to ever stand up to Captain Kirkland. Arthur had that adorable angelic look on his face that Francis would sometimes get a glimpse of if Arthur fell asleep working and his arms were spread out with Hero curling up into his embrace. Their position resembled that of a young couple, perhaps even a newly married one. But it was most definitely a loving position, one shared by only those with a very special bond.

What had happened last night? Did Arthur know he was there? Had they...

Something suddenly snapped in Francis at that moment. A wave of pain seemed to flood him, and a single thought was all that existed in his mind at that precise moment.

* * *

**Boom. Cliffhanger. What is Francis going to do? Take note of everything that has happened in this chapter. And I mean everything. Something will be different next chapter.**

**Anyway! That big decision! I want to be able to decide a side pairing for this story! One involving China (if you have another then please don't hesitate to suggest it) and the last poll I took had 2 votes for NiChu, 3 for RoChu and 3 for me choosing myself. So we'll be taking a final vote! If NiChu wins then so be it, but if RoChu wins, I will add a little bit of implied GiriPan at the very end.**

**Final votes start... Now!**

**Sayounara minna-san!**

**~Neko**

**(Oh and thank you to MYJEN123, _neko-chan_ and Naruko Uzu for reviewing!)**


	11. For a friend

**Labas! That was Lithuanian by the way- a country that normal people don't seem to know. Unless you watch Hetalia, which makes me proud that I know more countries than normal people.**

**Today we find out what happens to Francis! So sit down, get comfy, pay attention and...**

**Tanoshimi!**

* * *

**Chapter 10: For a friend**

_**Sunflowers, letters and tattered remains**_

* * *

"Urghhh..." Alfred moaned.

Then he sat up as he awoke groggily, rubbing his eyes to wake up properly. He looked to the side of the bed to see that Arthur was no longer sleeping beside him and something within him felt a little upset at the thought.

The door opened slowly to reveal Toris, Alfred's friend from when he was imprisoned. Toris would often bring him meals and it seemed that he was intending to do the same today as he walked in with a tray of breakfast.

"Hello sir." Toris smiled.

"Hey Toris." Alfred grinned.

"I brought you breakfast, would you like to have it here?" He asked politely.

"Yeah sure, that'd be cool." Alfred nodded.

So Toris gently placed the tray on Alfred's lap as instructed and he seated himself upon Arthur's desk chair, turning it to face Alfred and positioning his hands neatly in his lap as he sat there, his back straight and his face boasting a modest yet heart-warming smile.

"Matthew was worried about you." Toris whispered.

Alfred almost choked on what he was eating and had to heartily pound his chest in order to cure himself of the chokes and spluttering.

"Mattie? He was worried? Damn I stayed here a little longer than I meant to..." Alfred mumbled.

"It's fine. I told him you are okay. I've known Matthew for a long time and it's very worrying seeing him like that." Toris explained.

"Uh-huh." Alfred nodded, not fully listening. "So Toris, I was just wonderin'... Where's Artie?"

"Artie?" Toris frowned, tilting his head to the side. "Oh you mean Captain Kirkland? He's up on the deck. Would you like me to take you to him?"

"Yeah dude! Take me to him!" Alfred beamed.

* * *

It was just another beautiful morning for Arthur Kirkland. Surprisingly, this one was normal and seemingly uneventful. The sun was shining down on him, gently heating his face. The sea air was flowing through his hair, the smell pouring into his nostrils. And the sounds of the rolling sea tides were a comforting sound for his ears.

...There was, however, another sound which was not as comforting to his ears.

"Artie! Artie!"

And that was a certain annoying little 'Hero'.

"I was having a peaceful moment up here..." Arthur sighed. "Until _you _came and ruined it!"

"Dude, I don't ruin things." Alfred laughed. "I make 'em better with my mere presence!"

"Bloody idiot." Arthur muttered.

"Stuffy gentleman." Alfred grinned.

It was all silence for a few moments. Something felt nostalgic about their little exchange- something they were both wondering about. Perhaps it reminded them of their times when Alfred had been locked up? Or maybe... Just maybe... This witty banter reminded them of something else?

"Captain!"

Their thoughts were disturbed as the turned to see Matthew running towards them. His face was contorted with pain and worry, his hair strewn into complete disarray and his glasses were positioned at an odd angle, most likely due to the amount of panic he was currently going through.

"What is it Matthew?" Arthur asked, his face now troubled with a worried frown.

"I-I found this note sir..." Matthew squeaked, nervously offering up the small scrap of neatly folded paper.

Arthur took it without a second thought and quickly unfolded the small note, instantly recognising the flamboyant pen strokes as the handwriting of Francis Bonnefoy, who hadn't been seen by anyone all morning.

_**Dear Arthur,**_

_**Or perhaps I should say... Captain Arthur Kirkland? Yes Arthur, for although we are "friends", it hasn't escaped me that your loyalty seems to lie with others rather than I, who have known you for longest. I'm the most faithful of your crew, yet it seems the ones who get all your attention are the ones that perform heroic feats.  
And so that brings me to my next point. The reason I have left is because I am going to fight Captain Ludwig. By the time you have found this note, I will be gone. I will not return until I have accomplished something so don't expect to see me soon.**_

_**Your 'first mate',  
Francis Bonnefoy**_

'_I am going to fight Captain Ludwig'_

Arthur was at a loss for words. Francis Bonnefoy, a man who at one time was his only friend, had left to try and perform what they both knew was impossible. Ludwig was hard enough to defeat as it was, but Francis would never stand a chance against him- let alone the whole crew.

"A-Artie? You okay? What's it say dude?" Alfred asked.

The Captain said nothing. He just continued to stare at the wooden floor in stunned silence. The realisation slowly hitting him: he might have just lost his most loyal crewmate.

* * *

"Ai ya..."

A long, tired sigh escaped Yao's mouth as he stared out to sea. His oversized sleeves were again covering his hands and his arms were casually resting on the railing. Something always put him at ease while staring out at beautiful sights like this. It allowed him time to think things over in difficult situations and he could easily find himself drifting into his daydreams as he stared.

But Yao found himself quickly coming out of his trance, for he suddenly felt as if he was being watched. Like there was a set of eyes on him, a set of unwavering, fixated eyes.

"_Privyet_."

It was Ivan Braginsky. Possibly the creepiest member of the pirate crew (well, in Yao's opinion he was anyway). His eyes glowed with an eerie purple tinge, just as they always did and his smile was wide, resembling a Cheshire cat. He was happy, or at least Yao hoped he was. It was actually rather hard to tell with this man.

"_N-Ni hao_..." Yao muttered.

"I got this for you." Ivan smiled.

Yao looked to his right hand. In it Ivan held a single bright yellow sunflower. It looked healthy too, despite the fact they were out at sea and it had no proper place to flourish and grow. Reluctantly, Yao took the sunflower and gave it a small sniff before thanking the Russian.

"Thank you-aru..." Yao whispered. "But where did you get this?"

Ivan just smiled. His eyes now closed and a wide grin just about visible behind his soft white scarf. He said nothing in response to Yao's question- he just carried on smiling. Admittedly, Yao was a little taken back by all this, perhaps even a little scared?

And behind that Russian's joyful smiling mask was a long list of everything he wanted to say. How Ivan admired his fighting skills, how he liked the way he didn't need to use a sword to knock out an enemy...

...How that sunflower was actually from Ivan's personal vase- a vase that he would never let anyone see because it and its contents were so valuable to him.

* * *

"Dude, Artie. Say something man!" Alfred whined.

The impact of the letter had obviously been too much, but no-one else knew what was written inside it. Arthur just had no idea what to say- after all he had just lost a valuable friend.

"I...I..." Arthur began.

"Ai ya! Captain Kirkland come and see this-aru!" Yao called.

Without another moment to lose, Arthur responded to the call by running along briskly towards the edge of the ship where Yao and Ivan were stood with Alfred strolling quickly behind. Yao was leaning over the railing of the ship, his face stunned with amazement.

"What is it?" Arthur asked, his face now shaped into a frown.

Yao pointed down below- down towards the sea. And then Arthur saw it: right beside his ship, floating alongside it like a baby would with its mother, was a small rowing boat. It certainly didn't look stable. In fact it looked old and barely able to support even one human. But humans were not what this boat was carrying. Inside this boat were the remains of some rather elegant yet unmistakeably pirate clothing. Such flamboyant garments could only belong to one man...

"Aren't those clothes belonging to Francis?" Ivan asked, tilting his head curiously.

"I am sure of it-aru! That has to be his!" Yao declared.

"What're you saying? They stripped him?" Alfred frowned.

"I think the matter is a little more serious than that." Ivan muttered darkly.

"...Captain? Are you alright?" Matthew whispered.

But Arthur knew the situation better than any of them, and as he stared down at the tattered remains- he knew what he had to do next.

"They've got him..." Arthur muttered. "I don't believe it but they've got him..."

"Whatcha talkin' about Artie? Who's got who?" Alfred asked.

But Arthur wasn't listening. He wasn't in the right headspace to properly listen to anyone in fact. What he was ready for though, was action. And as he pulled his pirate hat down lower and pulled his arms into the sleeves of his red coat, it became obvious to everyone else that he was ready for action as well.

"Yao, you're coming with me." Arthur declared. "We're going to find Ludwig. Do I make myself clear?"

"_Mei you wen ti!"_ Yao beamed, saluting proudly.

"Matthew, for the next few days- you're in charge." Arthur continued. "Ivan, I'm leaving you to protect everyone so don't get creepy about it! Yao, make preparations and make it quick- make sure you're ready to fight."

"Artie..." Alfred began.

"We will back in a few days- a week or two at the most." Arthur went on, ignoring Alfred. "I'm sure that they're close. If they weren't then we wouldn't have received their little... Message so quickly..."

"Hey Art-" Alfred tried to interrupt.

"Under no circumstances are you to come looking for us." Arthur instructed, still ignoring Alfred's attempts to ask questions. "This job will be done quickly and efficiently, so I want none of you butting in... Is that clear?"

All of them nodded except for Alfred and Arthur walked off in the direction of his room in order to get ready. He didn't get far before being stopped by Alfred who ran after him and placed his hand on the Captain's shoulder.

"Artie! You gave everyone instructions apart from me! What am I meant to do?" He whined.

Arthur turned- his face serious and his eyes glaring coldly. Alfred had seen him upset, angry and determined before but it had never been anything like this. It even made Alfred flinch back a bit with shock- especially when his voice, now lower and quieter, spoke the answer to Alfred's question.

"You..." Arthur began. "Obey the rules and stay out of trouble."

And then he left without another word. Alfred could no longer bring himself to stop him.

* * *

**Translations:**

**_Privyet_- Hello in Russian**  
**_Ni hao_- Hello in Chinese**  
**_Mei you wen ti_- No problem**

* * *

**In this chapter, my favourite bit was the fluffy RoChu moment. I've almost decided on the sub-plot side pairing by the way! Thanks to the support of my readers, I have two possible endings for China, and it can go either way. One ending is RoChu and GiriPan, made by me and the other is NiChu, made by Lord Kharl! So take your pick.**

**Thanks to escritoria, Lord Kharl, Myjen123 and MDWOLFGIRL for reviewing!**

**Sayounara minna-san!**

**~Neko**


	12. Dearest brother

**Yia sou! If you haven't already guessed, that's Greek for hello!**

**Sorry I haven't been updating! Like I may have said before, blame the school work! I have a lot of coursework lately so writing is coming along slowly. I'm also going to start my first piece of French coursework- but not only that, I'm getting a Frenpal! (French Penpal. No-one? Not funny? Okay...)**

**In case you can't tell, I'm very happy today because I found out that I got a second A* in GCSE English! I'm so happy! Guess I am a little smart! (Not really...)**

**Tanoshimi!**

* * *

**Chapter 11: Dearest brother**

_**Filled with unexpected surprises**_

* * *

"Ve~! All done! Be careful it's not too hot!" Feliciano beamed.

"Merci Feliciano." Francis nodded.

"Just Feli's fine!"

There was something about Feliciano that was just so likeable. Something about his attitude, perhaps his personality, or maybe it was just his sweet innocent face. Whatever it was, many people found it extremely difficult to hate him. In a similar way, Feliciano couldn't bring himself to hate anyone either- he was simply too nice of a person.

"Vat is Feliciano doing?" Ludwig frowned as he watched from the doorway.

"It would seem that he is getting on with the prisoner." Kiku stated.

"I know zat, but vhy? I told him not to get too attached. Captain Kirkland might not come anyvay." Ludwig sighed.

"He is rike rittle child when stray animal is found." Kiku nodded.

"Ja, but how many stray animals do you use as bait to lure an even better stray animal so zat you can kill both animals and claim victory?" Ludwig asked.

"...I think you went a rittle too far with my metaphor." Kiku muttered.

He had indeed, but only Kiku and Ludwig noticed this. In fact this whole conversation went unnoticed by Feliciano and his 'stray animal'. Neither of them had any idea what was in store for Francis, but none of them had any idea what was going to happen next.

* * *

_**Meanwhile...**_

"Ai ya, we're here." Yao whispered.

"Good. Are you sure that they haven't seen us?" Arthur asked.

"I'm fairly certain-aru." Yao nodded.

"You better be. I'd rather get through this with no bloodshed. Save that for another day. Today I just need to get Francis back." Arthur explained.

It was silent for a few moments between the two. The sea air was fresh and relaxing and the seagulls were soaring overhead, crying out happily. The small boat they were in was just rocking slowly with the waves alongside Captain Ludwig's ship and the sound of the ocean was filling the silence between them.

"...Opium?" Yao asked.

"Excuse me?" Arthur frowned.

"I called you Opium. What is your relationship with Francis-aru?" Yao questioned.

"Why are you...?" Arthur began.

"Don't dodge the question-aru." Yao snapped.

"Francis... Well..." Arthur began.

It was a good question. In fact, Arthur had never really thought about it before. Francis annoyed him a lot of the time, but when Arthur thought about it- he really wasn't all that bad. Perhaps he was just Arthur's First Mate? But if Arthur trusted him enough to be his First Mate, then surely he was more than just an acquaintance?

"He's... He's my..."

* * *

_**Captain Arthur Kirkland's ship...**_

"Dude, I'm bored."

Alfred said this rather loudly, but no-one was around to hear. Only a day had passed since Arthur's sudden departure but truth be told, he was now a little bored.

After all it was hard to find people to hang out with other than Arthur and Yao. Matthew had been busy running the ship in Arthur's absence, Toris had proven to be very difficult to find with all of his chores and Ivan... Well, Ivan was Ivan and that meant he was definitely off the list of people to hang out with.

Now Alfred had tried to speak to Matthew, after all he seemed like the best person to hang out with in the absence of the other two. But every time Alfred got close, Matthew would be busy with crew work, or Matthew would send him off on another errand. He seemed to take his new job very seriously... At least Alfred assumed that was the case.

"So bored..." Alfred sighed, collapsing onto the bottom bunk of his bed- not even caring that it was Matthew's bunk.

His eyes slowly drifted from object to object around the small room, searching for a source of entertainment. However, nearly everything he saw was Matthew's since it had originally been Matthew's room and Alfred hadn't actually had anything with him when he joined the crew. In fact, the only things that Alfred actually owned were his original tattered clothes, which he kept under his pillow at all times. The clothes he was wearing currently were given to him by Toris, who had delivered them on Arthur's behalf.

_Arthur... I hope he's okay... I mean, he's done a lot for me so it's natural I'd be a little concerned right? He gave me a room, he never asked for my name, he gave me these clothes... I mean, if you think about it, he's the first person that-_

But Alfred's thoughts trailed off. As his eyes had drifted around the room, searching for nothing in particular, his eyes had fallen upon an intriguing object: it was the chest that Alfred had seen before, the one that he had originally planned to ask Matthew about.

And almost as suddenly as he had laid eyes upon it, Alfred found himself actually approaching the chest, curious to discover what was inside and not caring one bit about the consequences that could come from this. After all, Alfred had always been a 'do first, questions later' type of guy as he had shown back in the harbour when he had protected Yao.

So, without another thought about Matthew's privacy, he grabbed the lid and pulled open...

But the chest wouldn't open because it was clearly locked. Alfred had decided so suddenly about opening this chest that he hadn't noticed the keyhole.

_Dammit! That totally ruined my fun! Come on man... If you were Matthew, where would you keep your key?_

Now that was a good question. Perhaps there was a hidden area in the room somewhere that Matthew used to hide the key, or maybe he cleverly hid it under the floorboards? What if the key was hung up somewhere high and Alfred had to try and reach for it to obtain it?

But for some reason, Alfred didn't feel the need to look up somewhere high for the key. In fact he didn't look down low either. For some reason, Alfred felt his eyes being drawn to the head of Matthew's bed... After all, that was where his pillow was...

* * *

"Right. Let's go." Arthur muttered.

"Ai ya..." Yao whispered.

Quickly and quietly, Yao and Arthur began their infiltration of Captain Ludwig's ship. One way or another, they were going to find Francis and bring him back. He was somewhere on the ship and it was their mission to locate him. Failure was not an option.

"You go that way." Arthur commanded.

Yao responded with only a single nod and in the next moment, Arthur was off. So Yao continued in the direction he had been shown, sneaking in a sleek cat-like way in pursuit of Francis.

But suddenly he came to a stop as he saw a very inviting image: a room with the door ever so slightly open stood there in front of him. He was fairly certain that there was no-one inside so, taking a quick sneak-peek first, he walked straight on in.

It was as he had thought: there was no-one in this room. It all looked so humble and quaint in this particular room that it gave off a certain homey kind of feel. From what Yao had heard, Captain Ludwig was an excellent craftsman but Yao saw no bed in this room- just a pile of neat, comfy sheets on the floor, accompanied by a plump pillow at the head. Yao did however see a well made wooden folding screen at the other end of the room which was unmistakably Ludwig's handiwork.

It was obvious that Francis was not in this room however it was also just as obvious that this room belonged to Kiku. There was even a low table in the middle of the room along with a rolled out sheet of parchment on top to show for it. Admittedly this didn't really seem like evidence, but drawn onto the parchment were clearly the detailed sketches of Kiku's beautiful drawing style.

And although Yao was Kiku's sworn nemesis and it was no secret that he wanted to kill Yao, the Chinese man couldn't help but admire Kiku's beautiful drawings... Even if Yao wasn't quite sure what they were meant to be.

Well, he could make out vague images at least. It seemed to be a tropical beach beside a sparkling ocean somewhere. The picture seemed well shaded, showing that it was night time and just a short distance away from the overlapping waves was a reasonably sized cliff which seemed to lead to a forest- and a very exotic one at that.

"What a strange painting-aru." Yao frowned. "But then again, it's as expected of-"

Yao's eyes suddenly jolted wide open and his mouth was open with shock. Before he could finish his sentence, a sudden rush of voices flowed into his head:

* * *

"_Zey're back again."_

"_Hai, I agree."_

"_Say whaaat?"_

* * *

Who did these voices belong to? Why were they suddenly rushing to his head? Yao shut his eyes tight and clutched his head in pain, inwardly begging for the pain in his head to cease.

* * *

"_Great, we caught 'em all!"_

"_Stop walking! White flag, see? White flag! White flag!"_

"_Listen as I tell you what heaven would be~..."_

* * *

"Ai ya!" Yao hissed quietly.

Then, almost as suddenly as they came, the voices stopped as Yao cried out in pain. Finally he was alone again in the empty room, his brain at peace one more. But those voices... Who were they?

The first was obviously Captain Ludwig. The one soon after was definitely Kiku. But the third... Yao was certain that he'd never heard it before. But he could definitely tell that whoever it was seemed to be a bit of a coward. After all, it was the same voice that had made the white flag comment later.

But as for the last two voices, Yao certainly didn't know who the very last voice was but he could take a very educated guess at who the other was. That voice... That accent...

...Hero?

* * *

_**Meanwhile...**_

_Now that is just one heck of a spooky coincidence._

Alfred was completely right of course because Matthew had hidden the key in his pillowcase- exactly the same spot where Alfred kept his precious things. It was definitely the key that he was looking for too, how many other keyholes could it belong to? So without any further holdup, Alfred resumed what he started earlier and began to open the chest...

A small click was the signal that Alfred needed to realise that the chest was open and so he slowly lifted the lid, unveiling its contents to him.

But it was nothing that Alfred had expected. It wasn't treasure, or special clothing- it wasn't even some sort of secret stash of food or anything like that. They were letters. Letters that were old and torn in some places but despite their damaged surface and frayed edges, Alfred could still make out the untidy scrawl upon them. Seemingly, these letters were all from the same person.

Alfred frowned, but still he picked up one of the many letters from the box. The one he had chosen had been random, so obviously it would make no sense whatsoever, but still Alfred's eyes found themselves being drawn to the top of the page.

But what he found and what he had been hoping for were two very different things. Alfred had expected letters from a lost love, maybe even letters from Matthew himself that he had never been able to send.

But it was nothing like that. Nothing at all.

_**Dearest brother Mattie...**_

* * *

**Cliffhanger! Sorry about that. I'll try and get another chapter out soon. The next chapter has been written by the way. In fact this one has been written for a while. It's just editing. I tend to take a long time with my editing. Again, sorry about that.**

**Thanks to Lord Kharl and Myjen123 for reviewing!**

**Sayounara minna-san!**

**~Neko**


	13. The Ghost and the Letters

**안녕하세요... Maybe I shouldn't listen to Gangnam Style when writing the author notes...**

**Sorry about the delay guys but the chapter is out now so let's put that long wait behind us! I wanted to up today because one year ago (9th December 2011) I watched Hetalia for the first time! So let's have a toast with our boots and...**

**Tanoshimi!**

* * *

**Chapter 12: The Ghost and the Letters**

**_'Keep heading north'..._**

* * *

_Damn Ludwig... Where on Earth could he be keeping Francis?_

Arthur had been running for quite a while now, his breathing beginning to become uneven and heavy. He kept the noise to a minimum though, just to remain undetected by members of the rival crew. His hurried footsteps were like the pitter-patter of mice feet, his eyes constantly darting about like some kind of nervous animal. He was determined to remain hidden, but just as determined to find Francis.

It felt like he had passed a billion rooms, none of them concealing his bearded companion. Most would have given up by now, but not Arthur Kirkland. No-one else knew this (except for Matthew) but when Arthur and Francis had first met, it had been when Francis had saved Arthur's life. He had saved him from imprisonment and ultimately from the gallows.

And today was the day that Arthur was going to return the favour.

* * *

_**Meanwhile...**_

* * *

"Dude, what the hell?"

Alfred's puzzled statement was a natural reaction. After all, Matthew had never mentioned his personal life and he never spoke of anything outside of the crew, even when asked. Now all of a sudden, Alfred had found a treasure chest filled with letters that he presumed to be from Matthew's mysterious brother.

Why had they been hidden? Why did Matthew never mention him?

But not dwelling for too long on this, Alfred picked up a letter and began reading.

_**Dearest brother Mattie,**_

_**Surprise it's me! You surprised? I know you are. I can see it in your eyes. Well... I can't actually see it, but I'm picturing you as I write this and I can see it in the eyes of the you I'm imagining!  
So believe me, I know you're surprised.  
Anyway, I'm far away from home now. And I'll be even further by the time you get this letter! Scary thought, huh? I hope Mom wasn't too upset about me leaving. You understand don't you?  
I know you do Mattie. I don't need to hear your response. I just know.**_

No name was left at the bottom. Perhaps it was because they knew each other so well. They were supposedly brothers after all. So from what Alfred could gather, Matthew's brother had left home- something that their mother was probably not too happy with.

But why had he left? Was it a family issue? Some kind of crazy ambition?

...With no regard for Mattie's privacy, Alfred continued on to what looked like the next letter.

_**Dearest brother Mattie,**_

_**Me again! I feel a little bad Matt. After all, I can send you letters but you can't send me any. Believe me, if I had a home where they could be dropped off, I would.  
Oh don't get the wrong idea! I'm not homeless or anything! It's just... I move about a lot, so I'm never in one place for too long. But there's nothing wrong with that! It's a pretty cool life actually- the one I always wanted.**_

_**I love it Matt. I never want this to change.**_

The second letter revealed a little more. It showed that this brother was pretty adventurous. This was probably why he left home: to have an adventure or to live out some wild dream.

Now Alfred was really intrigued, so he continued onto the next one with eager eyes.

_**Dearest brother Mattie,**_

_**How's everything at home? I've got good news! I've finally found somewhere to come back to- that's right. I've found a new home! I don't stay there often, but the owner says I can come back whenever! Plus the guy's got nice neighbours. I made a new friend- he's called Feliks, seems to like saying 'like' and 'totally' a lot.  
I left the details in the envelope, so go ahead! Now it's your turn to write **__**ME**__** a letter!**_

_**P.S Don't tell mom, 'kay? Love ya Mattie!**_

Alfred didn't bother trying to look for the address details. Instead he just carried on. However, he felt like skipping forward a few letters, because at first glance they didn't look too interesting.

_**Ahoy thar Mattie!**_

_**Strange greeting huh? Well I've got to get used to it, because that's what most people are saying here on this ship. That's right. I'm on a ship!  
I just figured that joining a crew would be the best way to go adventuring! Plus everyone here is real nice too. Nice bunch of people!  
I'd say the captain's best though! Okay so he never seems happy to see me but I'll work on him! And when I do, he'll be happy I snuck on board!**_

_**Haha... Yeah. I'm not making up the last part. I really did sneak in.**_

Alfred laughed quietly to himself. It seemed that Matthew's brother had guts... And a passion for adventure. So, wanting to read more of his life, Alfred hungrily continued to the next letter.

_**Dearest brother Mattie,**_

_**You'll never guess what happened the other day. Seriously it's one heck of a story and I bet you can't wait to hear it.**_

_**So I was there, sweeping up the deck, when suddenly some of my fellow crew members came up to me and they start looking all tough and stuff. And you know what they did? They pushed me and I fell into the water! Crazy right? Guess the guys on board really don't like me after all.  
But that's when it happened. As I felt myself slowly sinking, the captain himself jumped overboard- clothes on and all- and he dived right in and saved me!**_

_**Then afterwards, he went up to the guys who pushed me in and said "if yer gonna pick on someone, pick on someone yer own own size- like me" and then they totally ran off! Captain made me first mate, and now everyone respects me!  
But the best part is, the captain told me I'm not half bad- which is his way of telling me he likes me. He's never too forward about his feelings but I can tell.**_

The story had Alfred at a bit of a loss for words. His crew mates had pushed him in? That sounded rough. In fact, if Alfred didn't know any better, he would have guessed that Matthew's brother had joined a _pirate _crew.

Alfred had a few more suspicions about Matthew's mysterious brother and his heroic captain, but he didn't think too much of it and continued onto the next letter.

And, judging by what was written, Matthew's response to the last letter had not been positive.

_**Mattie,**_

_**Look Matt. I know you're a little scared about what happened to me but believe me- I'm fine. The captain saved me, remember?  
And as for your other questions... I guess there's no hiding it from you. Mattie, I'm a pirate- there's no easier way of putting it. I know that sounds really bad- but trust me, it isn't. Okay so I'm in a pirate crew, but that doesn't mean that I've changed. I'm still a good person. I'm still your brother.**_

The last letter had ended a little darkly and Alfred assumed that Matthew would not be too pleased to find out that his 'dearest brother' was actually a pirate. Alfred really wished he could see Matthew's response, but he would probably just have to assume what it said from his brother's reply.

_**Mattie,**_

_**I'm really sorry Matt. I can tell you aren't too keen on me being a pirate, but I told you: I'm a **__**good**__** pirate. Can you really see me being evil? I'm a good guy Matt! You should know that!  
And pirates aren't that bad Matt. Okay some of the ones in my crew are but the captain definitely isn't. In fact, he's misunderstood. People say he's done bad things, but he's been blamed for what members of his crew have done- he isn't a bad guy.  
I know deep down that he isn't. And if you knew the guy, I'm sure you'd agree.**_

Now Alfred was starting to get a little more curious about this captain. He'd been falsely accused and on top of that, he had saved Mattie's brother and had kindly promoted him to the place of first mate- supposedly to stop the rest of the crew bullying him. Was he really a good guy then?

In a way, it reminded Alfred of Arthur. Sure the guy was a little rough around the edges, but Arthur had given him clothes, food and the closest thing that Alfred had to a home and family. Of course at first Alfred had been stubborn and sceptical like Matthew had apparently been, but Arthur had been amazingly patient and kind. Now they really trusted one another. It was kind of funny really.

With a fond smile while thinking about this, Alfred continued on to the next letter...

* * *

_**Meanwhile...**_

* * *

"'Ow did I wind up in zis mess...?"

Yet another sigh escaped the Frenchman's mouth- a bored, melancholy sigh. All Francis had for company were the faint sounds of the rolling waves outside and the occasional creaking whine of the tired ship. The room was dimly lit, with not a window or a crack to see outside. The room was without proper furnishings- the only main features being the rags piled into the corner for a makeshift bed and the iron bars dividing the room in half to block Francis's freedom.

Where had Francis seen something like this before? The answer to that was simple: a similar room had been set up for Arthur when the two had first met.

"Arthur..." Francis whispered. "I wish I could 'ave seen your face one last time... To see your gorgeous green eyes, to glimpse your beautiful blond 'air... I am sure zey will kill me soon... If only my words could reach you..."

Francis let out another sigh and closed his eyes. His eyes looked moist and pooled in the corners were some very distinct and depressing tears. His neck was beginning to ache with exhaustion because of having to hold his head back against the wall but Francis didn't care one bit. If he was to die soon anyway, then there was absolutely no point in trying to take care of him anyway. Francis figured he probably looked in a pretty sorry state anyway and who was there left to see him?

"Mon dieu... Look at you..."

Francis flinched and bolted upright. It sounded crazy but Francis could have sworn he heard a voice. And, although this sounded crazier, it almost sounded like a woman. Perhaps it was just some weird hope in the depths of his heart- perhaps it was just wistful thinking... But even Francis seriously doubted that even his deepest desires would want some strange woman to be talking to him. If he could choose, then it'd be Arthur any day.

"P-pardon moi?" Francis stuttered.

"After all I did for you, still you end like zis..." The voice sighed.

"I zink you may 'ave me confused for someone else." Francis chuckled before stopping altogether in realisation. "And also, who are you? I cannot see your face..."

But just as Francis was finishing his sentence, a pretty young woman was beginning to materialise in front of him. She was dressed like a peasant in mere rag-like clothing, yet she still gave off a bold and striking aura at the same time. Her hair was short blonde and boyish hair and her eyes were deep blue and focused. The icy stare she gave him seemed so passionate and fiery, yet beautiful and fascinating at the same time.

Seeing his face still confused, it was safe to assume that Francis still had no clue who this woman was.

"You... You don't know who I am...?" She whispered softly.

Francis slowly shook his head. He felt a little bad for just shaking his head though. After all, he didn't want to let down such a pretty young lady. She tried not to seem disheartened though, although her face showed traces of shock and despair.

"Zat does not matter." She shook her head, making her short golden locks wave slightly. "All zat does matter is zat you need my 'elp- so listen closely."

He did as instructed and sat forward in preparation for what she had to say. He didn't even seem to care that he was talking to a strange new woman who had simply appeared to him in his prison cell. There was something about her though- something familiar, something that made him want to trust her. Even if she was a mirage or a hallucination, he still wanted to listen to what she had to say.

"Keep 'eading north. Got it? I am doing zis for your sake, so you should pay attention. Understand?"

"O-oui..." Francis muttered. "But 'ang on, who _are _you really?"

The sight of the slim young woman was slowly beginning to fade. Francis leaned in and reached out his hand to try and grab her hand, her clothes- anything he could to stop her from leaving. But his hands simply passed through her as if she were some smoke effect or a type of misty fog.

"Wait! Who are you?" He repeated with a desperate pleading tone evident in his voice.

She simply placed her hands together, interlocking her fingers. Her eyelids drooped to a close and a peaceful sigh was heard escaping her lips.

"If you do not remember, zen per'aps it is better if you just forget." She whispered.

Then she vanished, leaving no trace behind. Francis was alone again. Who was that woman? Why could he not see her face? And why did Francis have to head north?

"Francis!"

The door at the back of the room slammed open. Daylight shone in, blinding Francis temporarily with its beauty. But as he rubbed his eyes comfortingly, they were able to adjust to the blinding light. Once more he could see, and his sight was directed straight at the open doorway before him.

Yet what he saw made him want to rub his eyes again. Was he going crazy? Was he having another vision? Surely this handsome man standing before him, wearing a familiar red coat and flamboyant red hat, surely he was not here to save him? Of course he was going mad. There was no way that Captain Arthur Kirkland was standing there- staring blankly, panting heavily- and had come to save him. There was no way. Not a chance. Absolutely impossible.

But of course... There obviously was a way because he _was _standing in the doorway, and he _had_ come to save a member of his crew.

No, that wasn't it. Arthur had come to save his friend.

* * *

**Hope you enjoyed that chapter! No real cliffhangers- that's good right? Expect to see a little more excitement in the next chapter! So stay tuned (or subscribed) to Forgotten, but not gone for fighting, confessions and the loss of something precious. What could it be?**

**Sayounara minna-san!**

**~Neko**


	14. Why must we fight?

**Chapter 13: "Why must we fight?"**

_**Where some things seem amiss**_

* * *

Francis continued to stare as Arthur focused his attention on the pesky little lock that stood between Francis and freedom. That determined face would usually send icy chills down his spine- yet somehow this time Francis didn't feel as afflicted with these intense yet torturing emotions. He still felt them, but not majorly so like it usually was. It was strange, but he pushed this thought aside for the moment as he spoke.

"Mon Dieu... I cannot believe it. It's really you." Francis whispered.

"Who were you expecting?" Arthur grunted- expressing this as more of an ordinary statement rather than a question.

"I expected no-one." Francis muttered. "I thought I was done for, I thought that no-one would come."

Arthur gave a short sigh and Francis saw the slightest of smiles flash across his face in that instant before disappearing quickly. The door swung open finally and Arthur tilted his head back towards the door- gesturing Francis to run out with him.

"Well you thought wrong." Arthur stated simply. "Now let's get going."

Francis gave him a quick confirmation nod and Arthur darted out of the room with Francis following close behind.

* * *

"Ai ya..." Yao sighed, carelessly stumbling out of Kiku's room.

He knew he couldn't get too careless or weak let alone even think about letting his guard down when on an enemy ship but right now it was rather hard to keep his defences up. He was just rather overwhelmed by what he had just experienced: the voices that had rushed to his head when he saw Kiku's odd painting.

_But then again, it's not like I haven't experienced this before. In fact, there was that one time-_

"Yao!"

Yao snapped himself out of these thoughts- but it didn't matter since he would have more chance to think about these things later.

Right now, Arthur was speeding towards him- almost reminiscent of an angry raging bull (he would have to tell the captain that one later- or at least reference him to a bull somehow in the near future). This however was not important right now. What was important was that Francis was quite clearly visible behind him- this telling Yao instantly that they had done what they had set out to do and that Francis had been found.

But they were not out of the woods yet and so Yao joined them, running alongside the two at full speed. Before they knew it, the trio was back in the small and just about stable rowboat with Arthur and Yao rowing as fast as their bodies would allow- hurtling themselves further and further away from the dreaded Captain Ludwig's ship.

The mission was almost perfect. That is, if it weren't for the cunning black haired swordsman watching carefully and intently with a bird-like focus as he watched from his position in the crow's nest.

* * *

_**Meanwhile, back at the home ship**_

"Wow."

He had said it, although Alfred was not sure if he really meant it. After all there he was, seated comfortably in the middle of the room with his behind seated firmly on the hard, expertly polished wooden floor with a letter clutched in his hand and plenty more where that came from scattered around him- almost like he was some proud bird in a nest of letters.

He carelessly let go of the one in his hand and it floated down to the floor to be amongst its kind. As previously stated, Alfred had breathed one simple word: 'wow'- yet whether he meant it or not was another story entirely.

Not surprisingly (especially so considering this had been the only thing that Alfred had done for the past hour or so) Alfred had finished reading the letters from Mattie's weird and mysterious brother. He had been there for a good while now, reading away like a young teenage fanatic with some new fantasy novel. Now he had finished every letter- even the ones that didn't spark his interest on his first skim through.

Yet nothing (bar the incident where Mattie's brother was pushed into the water) interesting had happened. He had read no sad sob stories, no tales of heroic adventures- nothing: just plain old boring letters.

What was more: the letters had no real end. There was an obvious beginning- yet no end. Only some of the letters had dates- and the one that Alfred had guessed to be last was one them. Despite the fact that the date had been a long time ago (sometime last September) - the letters hadn't really ended.

Alfred felt like he had been deprived of something- like he had missed out on a good opportunity for something interesting to happen. Yet there had been nothing- nothing at all.

It was roughly at this point that Alfred began frantically looking through the letters again- at a higher speed this time. He skim-read through any letter he could get his hands on, and chucked back any letter he deemed to be a waste of time.

"There's gotta be something!" Alfred whined. "Maybe if there's some hidden code? Yeah that makes sense! Maybe I've gotta read every 3rd word of the letter or something? Yeah let's try that! Okay so... '_Mattie me I are see your I see I'm as this can in of-_' Okay screw this- it's crazy talk. Maybe try another..."

"Excuse me Mr Hero..." Whispered a voice that made Alfred bolt up straight in surprise. "But I don't think Matthew would appreciate you looking through his letters."

Alfred quickly scrambled into a standing up straight position but then relaxed into a slouch as he saw who it was standing in the doorway.

"Toris!" Alfred grinned gleefully for he knew he had nothing to fear with him. "How are ya?"

"I am well." Toris smiled while still looking a little uneasy as always. "But I don't think that Matthew will be when he finds out that you've been reading letters addressed to him."

"I understand." Alfred nodded sagely when it was obvious that he didn't as the last hour or so had proven. "But hey Toris, did you know Mattie has a brother? In fact do you know a bit more about him?"

Toris had been in the process of leaving the room shortly after Alfred had lied about saying he understood, however he had stopped at the word 'but' to listen to what Alfred had to say. It was obvious that Toris was preparing to visit whoever the tray of food was for, yet he still managed to spare a few moments to reply with his back turned to Alfred as he muttered his response:

"Forgive me, Mr Hero, but I don't know Matthew that well. In fact we only met through Arthur and we do not talk that often aboard the ship."

"Oh..." Alfred replied, his face looking slightly dumbstruck. "Okay."

Then Toris left, leaving the door to shut with a light, soft thud. Alfred frowned. Somehow, although he did not know why exactly, he felt less at ease and less comfortable- despite now being alone in his shared room- letters encircling him at his feet. He stared at the door where Toris had just exited, still frowning but now in deep thought.

...Was it just him? Or had there been something wrong with what Toris had just said?

* * *

**Back at Captain Ludwig's ship**

"Are you certain Kiku?" Ludwig frowned, inquisitively raising his brow.

"Hai. I would not lie to you." Kiku responded, accompanying this comment with a serious blank stare.

"Well I trust you." Ludwig concluded after a while. "And since I trust you, we will follow them. It should take a few days based on your description, and I plan to make this battle the last."

"As you wish captain." Kiku bowed. "I will follow you to the end. You have my word that I will be loyal and above all, I will never surrender."

"_Sehr gut_." Ludwig muttered approvingly in his native tongue. "We're giving them a home advantage by attacking them, so make sure that you have all you need to counterattack that fact."

Kiku nodded before swiftly moving off, leaving to do just as Ludwig had instructed. Now that the captain was alone, he took this opportunity to mutter quietly to himself.

"I _will_ get my revenge."

After he had said this, he pulled back the neat layers of his clothes to glance at the scar from the bullet wound that Arthur had caused: the symbol of his revenge, the essence of his hate for the fellow captain...

Yet as he looked down he saw that the scar wasn't there- despite the fact that Feliciano had said it probably would remain there forever.

"Hm. Odd..." Ludwig frowned, but he quickly shook his head and softened his expression as he headed back to his room to make preparations. "I guess it was just another one of his mistakes. That silly fool."

* * *

Speaking of Feliciano, although the peppy brunette did not hear much of battle-related news (he knew vague bits- like how they were at war but not the specifics) - he had heard that Francis had escaped. Even if Francis was known as a prisoner to practically everyone in the crew- Feliciano still saw him as a friend and he did hate to see him go.

"Hey Lovino? Are you done in the bathroom yet?" Feliciano called.

There Feliciano stood in the main part of their shared room. At one end was a door that led outside, a handmade wooden set of drawers placed to the left of it. At the other end was where Feliciano stood- just beside the other door that led to their private bathroom. It was a reasonably sized room, yet most of the space was taken up by the large double bed positioned in the middle against the back wall. Though fortunately there was just enough room at the foot of the bed for Feliciano to bob and pace around as he got dressed in the mornings.

"Shut up you bastard brother!" Lovino snapped- his voice echoing from within the bathroom. "I'm not done so quit being so impatient!"

"Okaaay! Take as long as you want!" Feliciano sang. "You usually do anyway!"

"I swear that when I get out of here I'll force _you _into this stupid cramped space and see how _you _like it!" Lovino threatened.

"Well I would like to use the bathroom soon." Feliciano nodded thoughtfully. "But anything for my brother, so take all the time you need!"

There was a silence, yet due to Feliciano's inability to read the atmosphere he couldn't tell that Lovino was probably being quiet because of the sweet, sentimental comment that his brother had just made. Although knowing Lovino with his quirky and odd mood swings- he would never admit this to Feli.

"Hey big brother?" Feliciano asked loudly, leaning against the bathroom door lightly as he did so.

"W-what is it?" Lovino stammered. "Don't tell me it's another soppy stupid-"

"Why do we all have to fight?" Feliciano interrupted. "I don't even know what made Ludwig and Mr Kirkland start this war in the first place."

"They're pirates remember? All the same. Fighting and rum is all they ever care about." Lovino muttered.

"But Ludwig is different." Feliciano responded. "And I don't see what's so bad about Mr Kirkland either. He may have creepy eyebrows and he may look a bit scary- but deep down he has to have something special close to his heart that he cares about, right? And when we care, we find compassion. And when there's compassion, there shouldn't be fighting."

"...You're an idiot..." Lovino mumbled, just about audible through the wooden door that separated them.

"Well... If thinking differently is silly and stupid." Feliciano began, slowly raising his head as he smiled a big, happy smile. "Then yeah, I guess I am an idiot!"

After this, Lovino heard the sound of the door to their room being opened and he stiffened up slightly- causing the water to splash and stir.

"H-hey Feli, what are you doing?" Lovino asked in a panicky worried tone.

"It's alright Lovino. I'll use Ludwig's toilet- I'm sure he won't mind! So go ahead and have your bath because you've got all the time in the world!" Feliciano explained.

And with that final statement, Feliciano shut the door. Lovino looked up towards the closest door himself, although he wasn't worried that somebody might barge in for he always locked the door anyway. He thought back to what Feliciano had said, looking down into the clear, crystal water and what lay below.

"Time..." He whispered to himself, reflecting back on Feliciano's words.

* * *

**The next day**

* * *

With their combined efforts, it had taken Arthur, Yao and Francis almost a day and a half to get back to the ship- never stopping once and alternating turns in rowing the boat. After being helped back up onto deck, Arthur was fully back in the swing of his role of captain. To his surprise, Alfred was there on deck waiting for him as he returned.

"Captain! You're back!" Alfred gasped excitedly.

"Yes Al- Hero. I am back." Arthur smiled, correcting himself as he realised that Alfred's name was still a secret.

_Al? What was he going to say? _Francis thought. _And my Arthur is smiling? I've spent more time with Arthur compared to that stupid Hero and even I have never seen him smile that often!_

"I knew you'd make it. I just knew it!" Alfred beamed happily.

"Well thank you for that." Arthur nodded. "I trust everything ran smoothly while I was gone?"

"Uh-huh." Alfred nodded eagerly. "Though it was pretty boring without you around Artie!"

_Artie? _Francis's thoughts raged on furiously. _It took ages for me to get permission just to call him Arthur! The nerve... How can he speak so casually with him? And how can Arthur actually be SMILING at this idiot?_

"Now now, I'm sure that Matthew did an excellent job." Arthur sighed, defending his temporary replacement. "At least there was no trouble."

"Well yeah, but you're really the only one I can trust here." Alfred went on. "You know, because of..."

The rest went unsaid, much to the annoyance of Francis. _Because of what? They must be keeping secrets! Like good friends, or maybe even..._

The image of 'Hero' sleeping in the arms of Arthur a few nights ago flashed into his mind at the very thought of it being more than just a simple friendship. This young man had not been with them for long, yet now he was already making more progress than Francis had in three years of travelling with Arthur. His rage was slowly building, the tension slowly rising as he watched the two talk like old friends.

Until finally, Francis snapped.

"ARTHUR!" Francis yelled, screeching at the very loudest volume that his voice could muster.

"...Yes?" Arthur eventually muttered after flinching at the sudden outburst and slowly turning around.

"I... I..." Francis panted. "I love you Arthur!"

The nearby crew all stared wide-eyed, open-mouthed and hardly blinking at the outburst. Members like Yao and Ivan had not been with the crew for long, although they knew of Francis's flirtatious advances. However, they would never have guessed that he had actually been _in love_. No, it seemed that no-one had been expecting that.

And of all the members witnessing the scene, Alfred looked the most shocked. Yet Arthur's facial expression did not falter whatsoever. He just stood there, large brows at normal height, emerald eyes at regular size and closed mouth in the shape of neither a smile nor a frown- but merely a straight, neutral and horizontal line.

And that was what confused everyone, for no-one (not even Francis or Alfred) could tell what he was thinking.

* * *

**Sorry for the wait guys! Hopefully updates should be quicker now because I've actually reached Chapter 19 where I am in my writing. I can't wait to show you guys- cuz two of my favourite scenes are going to be happening soon!**

**I've also stopped dropping hints. Looking back on it I should have just left you guys to guess the plot twist and meaning of the foreshadowing on your own. Perhaps I should go back and take those bits out for those reading in the future? Let me know what you think!**

**Sayounara minna-san!**

**~Neko**

_**(P.S thanks to everyone who reviewed!)**_


	15. A note within a bottle

**Chapter 14: A note within a bottle**

_**The final journal entry of...**_

* * *

It was a lovely afternoon, or at least it should have been. Yet for some reason, Alfred was finding it quite difficult to describe the day so far as 'lovely' when it really wasn't.

Francis's outburst had shocked everyone. In fact, Alfred constantly heard the curious mutterings as he walked from room to room along the hard wooden floors that covered the surface of the whole ship. Rumours were floating around and discussions of the event could be heard in hushed whispers amongst the crew- constantly reminding Alfred.

And Alfred wasn't even sure about how he felt about the whole thing. It was obvious that everyone else was either just plain shocked or even mortified by the idea of the two as a couple but if Alfred had to be honest: he wasn't quite sure how he felt.

Although when it came to other matters, how he felt was another story. True, he was unsure about Francis's confession, however he felt angry about the fact that he had been deprived of catch-up time with Arthur since the captain was now occupied with sorting out the situation privately in Francis's room.

Now Alfred was bored again, just as he had been when Arthur had gone. In fact it was like he was experiencing the exact same loneliness all over again- although this time he couldn't resort to rooting through Mattie's belongings as there was now a higher risk of being caught.

He sighed as he came to a stop alongside the wooden railing at the edge of the ship, then he turned and looked out to the vast sea.

"Stupid Francis." Alfred muttered quietly and angrily to himself. "Why'd he have to say somethin' like that now of all times? I wanted to hang out with Artie!"

His head dropped and he stared down at the energetic waves thrashing away at the base of the ship. How long could two people take to sort out some stupid confession anyway? The two had been in there for quite a while now. Seriously, how long were these things meant to take? Surely it was just go in, say stuff and then-

Hang on, what was Arthur going to say? After having this thought, Alfred's brain eventually started believing that there was a possibility Arthur liked him back.

Why did Alfred seem so angry about that? His instant reaction was something like: '_Well if he feels the same way then those two will be a couple. Then they'll be all soppy and lovey dovey like those stupid mushy couples... Plus they'll date and kiss and there'll be no-one left for me to talk to..._

Suddenly Alfred's thoughts (similar to that of a young child since they didn't understand what was so great about love either) ceased all of a sudden as he noticed something floating around in the waves that he had been subconsciously staring at.

A glimmer, a twinkle, a sparkle of light reflecting from the object was all that was needed to attract Alfred's attention. Of course, occasional shimmering from the waves could be seen on board ship- yet there was something so different and captivating about this unknown object's shine- something different, something new...

Naturally, Alfred felt the sudden urge to investigate.

* * *

**Captain Ludwig's ship**

* * *

It would be a while before they made contact with Captain Kirkland and his experienced pirate crew so Kiku had been spending most of his free time preparing for the upcoming battle.

In fact, he was practically ready. Now he was on his way back to his room, perhaps to spend his free time occupied with things like drawing and quiet paper folding.

However, on his way back to the comfort of his quaint little room- something strange out at sea managed to catch his eye and cause him to stop in his tracks.

It was another small rowboat, similar to the one that Kiku had spotted Arthur, Yao and Francis escaping in. Kiku wasn't quite sure which direction it had come from, yet it seemed to be hurtling further away as fast as it could- obviously wanting to escape their ship.

Naturally, Kiku deemed it suspicious and so he began quickly running back in the direction he had just been walking from in order to alert the captain. However, it was a mere few seconds before he was interrupted by a voice that caused him to stop in his tracks.

"No need to panic. Those are our men y'know."

Kiku turned around to see an old man with a mop standing there, staring out at the mysterious little rowboat that Kiku had spotted.

"What do you mean?" Kiku asked, frowning in confusion.

"They're from our crew. Jus' escapin' like all the rest." He explained. "To tell the truth, I've been thinkin' about leavin' too."

"Leaving? Why?" Kiku questioned.

"Simple." He smirked knowingly. "No-one trusts the captain y'see. No-one wanted him as cap'n."

"Then why did they join the crew?" Kiku frowned.

"Cuz he weren't the cap'n to begin with." He sighed. "The ol' cap'n died in his sleep one night. But he weren't old an' he weren't sick. Rumour has it that Ludwig killed him- though no-one knows how."

"That's insane." Kiku stated simply. "Why would Captain Ludwig kill the captain?"

"Because the ol' cap'n was mean to Feliciano. Ludwig joined the crew along with them Vargas brothers. He trusted Feli the most an' he didn't like how the ol' cap'n treated 'im, so he killed him."

"Explain how."

"Well..." The old pirate began, scratching the back of his head. "We examined the body an' in all honesty, there weren't nothin' there to say he was murdered." Kiku's expression darkened, making the old pirate continue a little quicker. "E-except for a weird lookin' pair o' fang marks in the neck o' the ol' cap'n. They didn' look like an animal's teeth, but then again they didn't look all that human either."

Kiku was baffled. What was this old man trying to suggest? It sounded ludicrous and far-fetched: there was no way that Ludwig was responsible for those fang marks, in fact, there was no way that anyone on board the ship could be responsible for fang marks. But... If no-one on the ship was responsible, then who or what was?

"I ain't quite sure how, but I know he did it." The elderly janitor continued. "That's why they're leavin'. I'd best get goin' soon, an' I advise you to do the-"

But before he could finish, he stopped with a sharp intake of breath. Kiku had suddenly drawn his katana on the poor old man and was holding it dangerously close to his throat.

"I think I know whose advice to follow and who's not to follow." Kiku explained, glaring darkly with a chunk of his hair hanging forward to cover his right eye- making him look intimidating. "You are a coward. A coward that is simply leaving the fight in the most crucial moments- that is the worst kind of coward. Where is your loyalty? Your honour? You may give in if you wish but I, Honda Kiku, will never surrender. I never have and I never will."

And after this small and threatening speech, Kiku withdrew his sharp blade and continued back to his room instead of rushing to tell Captain Ludwig. Kiku decided to just let the cowards go. That way there would be no weakness left in the final battle.

Yes, Kiku was strong, brave and loyal. He would never surrender for as long as he lived.

* * *

**Back to Captain Kirkland's ship**

* * *

"Okay so V-man, Aru- we clear on the plan?"

Yao sighed, but he nodded nonetheless. Ivan continued to smile exactly as he had done when listening to the explanation- giving no indication to whether he understood or not. Alfred could only hope that he had.

Just in case he hadn't, Yao took a deep calming breath and quickly re-capped for him.

"So, you want us to stand guard here while you jump into the water to get whatever is down there." Yao began, using small hand gestures to aid him in his explanation. "Then you want us to help you out of there once you're done. That it-aru?"

"Yup." Alfred grinned. "And if you help, I'll put in a good word for you two when I speak to the Captain."

"And you will call me Ivan and not V-man, da?" Ivan piped up.

"Sure, whatever floats your boat." Alfred smiled, shrugging his shoulders happily.

If it was possible, Ivan's jack-o-lantern smile would have grown wider. However, it wasn't possible and so he stayed the same. Alfred wasn't fazed by this though and clapped his hands once before beginning to bounce around a little on the spot excitedly.

"Alright! Aru, V-man- help me up!" He commanded.

Ivan's smile dropped.

"You said..." He began.

"Just a lil' fun!" Alfred beamed. "Plus _you_ haven't filled _your_ end of the bargain yet."

Ivan stood there- extremely annoyed and not smiling anymore. Small mutterings of the word 'kol' were repeated over and over as he stared at the annoying young pirate recruit. Yao was not annoyed though and so he helped Alfred up onto the side all by himself, disregarding the whispers of 'kol' much like how many others usually disregarded his occasional bursts of 'aru'.

Once he was up, Alfred placed his hands on his hips proudly and stared down at the ocean depths below. His smile began to fade slightly as he noticed the length from his position to the bottom: it was certainly not a short fall.

"Hmmm..." Alfred frowned, biting his lip. "Hey guys, d'you reckon I'll survive if I jump from he- AHHHHHHHH!"

The screaming was unexpected and so was Ivan poking Alfred in the sides- causing him to fall. Yao looked on with a worried crease in his brow and teeth gritted with anticipation. Without noticing, he had subconsciously grabbed on tight to the edges of the ship with fear of watching him splatter- although if he didn't want to see this he easily could have looked away.

Alfred hit the water with a splash and after a few moments of intense silence- Alfred's head popped up again, gasping for air and eyes wider than saucers in reaction to the unexpectedly cold water.

"I think that answers your question, da?" Ivan called, slightly smiling again with amusement.

Alfred glared up at the crafty Russian pirate- not approving of his actions. Ivan merely waved back as if there were nothing wrong. Since Alfred's threatening glare had no effect on him, he dived back down into the water again in search of the curious object that he had seen floating along in the sea.

Ivan straightened up from the hunched over position he was in as he stared down at the soaked young man. Satisfied, he rested his arms on the railing and looked straight ahead at the horizon.

"Something wrong?" He asked, not even needing to turn in order to know that Yao was troubled.

"It's nothing." Yao muttered.

"You forgot to say 'aru'." Ivan smiled.

"...Aru..." Yao sighed.

"Now I am sure that there is something wrong. So explain."

Ivan looked at Yao and Yao looked back at Ivan. The creepy grin was back again- yet Yao didn't feel as scared as he had been on previous occasions. This time he took a deep breath and disregarding Ivan's abnormal smile, he proceeded to explain what was bothering him.

"Well you see..." Yao began. "Every now and then, I get these weird voices. Sometimes they are ones I have never heard before and sometimes they are voices I know. I hear these voices in my head sometimes but it hasn't happened for a while-aru."

Ivan didn't dare to interrupt. He took this all in without the creepy smile (for once) and he simply listened.

"But when we rescued Francis from Ludwig..." Yao muttered. "I saw a drawing of Kiku's and... I heard the voices again-aru. This time it was Captain Ludwig, Kiku, some voices I didn't know and..."

Yao's voiced trailed off as his back hunched over even more and he stared down to the spot where Alfred had fell- seeing the man popping up every now and then gasping for air.

"...And?" Ivan repeated Yao's words after a few moments of silence.

"...I heard Hero..." Yao whispered.

Ivan kept quiet as he processed all of this information. Yao bit his lip as he waited through the silence. Ivan probably thought that he was crazy. So Yao simply remained silent- waiting for the moment when Ivan would mutter the words 'you're crazy' and storm off to leave him in peace.

But that moment never came. Instead, Ivan said something completely different.

"You know, I understand your problems." Ivan mumbled. "Sometimes you hear voices that give you a vision of the future- right?"

Yao nodded, straightening up and staring in shock- his eyes urging Ivan to continue.

"You know sometimes..." Ivan began, sounding distant with a faraway gaze in his eyes as he stared up to the sky. "I get these dreams. They always take place aboard a ship- but not this one and not Captain Ludwig's either. The ship is always the same: one that I've never seen before and looks very... Futuristic..."

Yao was interested now. The look in Ivan's eyes is what captured and kept his attention. He looked so focused and passionate- yet at the same time he stared with a glazed look that made Yao feel as if he was in another world.

"The people I see aboard that ship change constantly." Ivan went on. "But somehow, before I had even met them, I had a dream the night before the war between the two captains began- one about Captain Arthur and Hero. The Captain wasn't wearing his usual clothing and neither was Hero but it was definitely them. Even though Captain Arthur lacked that usual confidence and dominant nature that he has- it was definitely him."

Yao was amazed. All this time he had been worried about his strange problem when there had been someone else in the world in a similar situation. He and Ivan were crewmates, yet he had never known...

"Does this make you feel better?" Ivan asked, turning back to Yao and tilting his head.

"Much better-aru." Yao nodded with a slight smile.

"Good." Ivan added, smiling back but only slightly. The grin was not up to its full level of creepiness yet, but Yao didn't mind this side of Ivan either.

* * *

**Underwater**

* * *

It felt like a whole other world in the marine depths. Once Alfred had gotten used to the chilly waters it didn't seem so bad. It actually felt rather calming in the ocean. Now that he had passed the initial shock it felt almost soothing to be floating in the dark briny deep.

But Alfred was not there to relax: he was there to find the object that had compelled him into the water- the mysterious item that had attracted his attention and lured him in.

And after a few moments, he saw what he believed to be the object. A clear small bottle containing a single rolled up note inside. Alfred swam around this object a few times, observing it closely and never letting his gaze stray away from it. True, he should have just picked it up and swam back up to the ship, but he wanted to carefully study it first to see if it really was worth bringing back.

But then Alfred saw something. It was the first thing that caught his eye about the letter. There at the top written in spiky joined up handwriting were the words:

"_**The final journal entry of Captain Arthur Kirkland"**_

And if that wasn't enough to attract and entice him into taking the letter back, Alfred spotted another name in the midst of the untidy scrawls. To his surprise, he saw the name that fully convinced him to bring back this note in a bottle up to the surface.

"_**Alfred F. Jones"**_

* * *

**Cliffhanger? I suppose it is rather intriguing. I hope that this isn't too bad of an ending to the chapter. Trust me, there's worse cliffhangers coming up. Today's chapter was possibly the last calm, happy and possibly boring one: it all kicks off starting next chapter- but that doesn't necessarily mean that the final fight will start next time.**

**Stay subscribed for my second favourite scene in this whole story- read in next time to see what happens!**

**Sayounara minna-san!**

**~Neko**


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